


Unfamiliar

by bimboamyrose



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Gen, Slice of Life, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-12-03
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:07:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 43,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26368435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bimboamyrose/pseuds/bimboamyrose
Summary: Metal Sonic suffers a blow to the head that leaves him with a memory full of corrupted data during a fight with Sonic and the gang. When Amy accidentally reactivates him and realizes his confusion, she devises a half-baked plan to get him on their side for good. As he analyzes her unfamiliar kindness, Metal Sonic may learn more about himself than he previously knew.
Relationships: Amy Rose/Metal Sonic, metamy - Relationship
Comments: 27
Kudos: 125





	1. Disarmed

**Author's Note:**

> This work takes place approx 6 years after the events of Sonic Heroes and also takes into account canon interactions from Sonic CD.  
> This is my first time posting a fic, I hope you enjoy!  
> Follow bimboamyrose.tumblr.com/tagged/unfamiliar for early updates + previews.

It was a frigid winter evening on South Island. The air stung Amy’s face as she watched Sonic face off with his longtime robotic counterpart. She and the team stood on the sidelines, having already pummeled several badniks as Sonic insisted he take on Metal Sonic himself. Eggman had flown off already in frustration. They watched from a cliff as the two blurs rushed around down in the valley. Amy gripped her hammer, standing at the ready. Tails and Knuckles, meanwhile, idled nearby.

“When’s he gonna quit being so stubborn and let us help?” Knuckles grumbled, arms folded in annoyance.

“He’s just playing with it, it’ll be over soon,” shrugged Tails, who was fiddling with a remote.

Amy ignored them. She’d trained hard to get to the point where she felt confident joining in on the action. She wasn’t going to let herself get cocky when more enemies could appear at any moment. Eggman could be calling for backup for all they knew.

“Got it! If I can get close enough, I should be able to deactivate that fake Sonic,” boasted Tails, brandishing a remote control dotted with various buttons and knobs. 

“You guys wait here!” He took off, flying down into the valley.

“Be careful!” Amy called out. “Knuckles, get ready in case we have to follow him.”

“He’ll be fine,” he replied, eyes following his teammate’s descent. 

They watched as Tails approached the feuding hedgehogs near the bottom of another cliff. They constantly dashed toward one another, colliding and ricocheting off the ground and mountain walls. Tails approached carefully, landing on a narrow cliffside a few feet off the valley floor.  
“Sonic!” he called out, “Keep him busy nearby, I should be able to deactivate him from here!”

Before Sonic could respond, Metal Sonic was already breaking loose from their struggle, propelling himself toward Tails.  
“Tails! Stay back!” Sonic jumped after Metal, but he wasn’t able to stop the robot from dashing at his teammate, knocking him off the small cliffside.

Tails struggled to get his balance as he plummeted to the ground, dropping the remote into a high pile of snow as he did. Though he was able to turn himself around, he didn’t manage to find his balance mid-air and flew clumsily, landing on his wrist. His yelp echoed through the valley.  
“Tails!” Amy yelled from above.

“Hang on!” Knuckles glided off the cliffside and landed near him.

Sonic managed to jump up to the same cliffside and collide with Metal Sonic. “You pile of rust! You’re in for it now!” The two struggled for a moment before Metal Sonic kicked himself off the ground again, flying straight upwards in Amy’s direction. “You’re not getting away!” Sonic lunged after him, hitching a ride on the robot’s back.

“Sonic!” Amy raised her hammer like a baseball bat. In a second, the two blue hedgehogs were floating mere feet away from where she stood. “You know what to do!,” she called out.

Sonic leaped from his enemy’s back, spin dashing in her direction. She swung her hammer, connecting with his body and sending him rushing back directly into Metal Sonic’s head. The robot let out a loud series of beeps as its propeller system failed and it was sent crashing toward the valley floor. Amy could see the light leave its eyes a moment after the collision, its face turning completely dark. The metal body landed face up deep in a pile of snow, apparently defeated.

The moment he landed, Sonic rushed back down the hillside to his teammates. “Tails! Are you alright?”

Knuckles was helping him steady himself. Tails held his right wrist in his other hand. “I think my wrist is broken,” he winced.

“That was a bad fall,” Knuckles growled. “But you’ll be fine.”

“I’m sorry Tails- I should’ve been able to stop him before he got to you.” Sonic blamed himself for Tails’ injury, glaring in the general direction of the robot’s landing site.

“Is Tails alright?” Amy called out from the top of the cliff. The sun was beginning to set- it was getting difficult to see and the cold wind was beginning to blow through her. She shivered.

Sonic responded by running back up toward her. “Let me give you a ride.” He outstretched his arms, offering to carry her down to meet the rest of the team.  
Amy nodded. She allowed her hammer to disappear into a gentle puff of pink mist and approached Sonic. If her heart wasn’t already racing from the battle, it was now skipping beats as her crush picked her up in his arms. If it wasn’t for the warm flush in Amy’s cheeks she’d be frozen solid from the wind chill that hit her as the two practically flew down the hillside into the valley. She did her best not to giggle gleefully when he put her down, focusing instead on tending to Tails.

Amy examined his wrist. “Can you wiggle your fingers?” He struggled to move them. The area just below his thumb was swollen and slightly deformed. “I think it’s broken- we need to get you to a doctor,” she concluded. “Keep holding it and try not to move your hand.”

Tails nodded, trying to keep tears from gathering in his eyes. The team had experienced their fair share of pain, but this was the first time Tails had broken a bone, and the pain was searing.

“I’ll take him back to the village.” Sonic picked up his friend gently. “Can you two make it back okay?”

“I’ve got it under control,” replied Knuckles.

“We can make it back together,” Amy corrected.

“I’ll meet you guys back home. You ready, buddy?” He waited for Tails to settle his position and took off with him.

“Well, it’s getting cold. We better follow,” Knuckles started off in the same direction.

“Getting cold?” Amy mocked. It was practically freezing. She breathed on her hands and rubbed her arms. It was only a 30-minute walk back to town, but the cold made it feel like an eternity.

“Don’t worry, kid,” Knuckles grabbed her around the shoulder and yanked her over to him. “I’m like a furnace!” he bellowed. 

“Geez, you really are,” she snickered in response. 

At least she had a friend to keep her company. Even if Knuckles could be a brute, they had grown to get along in the last few years. The pair walked close together, recalling the high points of their battle and laughing along the way. Once back in town and assured that their friend was going to be alright, the team went their separate ways for the night.

\----------------------

Amy got up at sunrise the following morning. They each lived alone now and she worried Tails would have trouble with breakfast. The moment she rose, Amy started baking. By the time 9 AM rolled around, she had a basketful of muffins to bring to her friend. She took off, wrapped snugly in a wool coat and knitted scarf, breathing in the refreshing winter air on the short walk to Tails’ house.

Amy rang the video doorbell. “It’s me! I brought you breakfast!” A moment later, Tails answered the door groggily.

“Hi Ames,” he yawned.

Amy gave him a worried look. “You look tired. How do you feel?”

“Come in,” he beckoned. “It was so hard to sleep with this stupid cast.”

Amy closed the door behind her and followed Tails into his small kitchen. He didn’t have a dining table, just a small two-top counter that he sat at. “Sorry. I hope you feel better soon. Maybe these muffins will help.” She opened the basket and plated one for him.

“Thanks Ames! I definitely don’t have the energy to cook.” His face lit up at the sight of breakfast.

“That’s nothing new,” she waved him off. “I’m making coffee.” 

She brewed some up and served a cup for each of them, sitting next to Tails and enjoying a muffin for herself. They chatted about last night’s event leisurely over breakfast.

“So anyway, you know how I had that remote? I dropped it. I really have to get it back,” Tails remarked.

“If you’re feeling up for it, I’ll go with you.”  
“Really? That’d be great.” Tails thought for a moment. “Hmm. It must be buried in the snow by now.”

“Yeah, we should get it back before the snow piles any higher,” Amy agreed. 

Amy cleared the plates and mugs away for Tails. His thick winter fur was enough to keep him warm, but he struggled to wrap a scarf around him. The day was getting a bit warmer but the air was still frigid. The two walked to the site of their battle the night before, trekking through increasingly thick snow as they went.

“We should be able to find it with a metal detector…” Tails held up his good wrist, brandishing a watch with several dials on every side. “Uh, can you give me a hand?” he asked bashfully.

“Oh!” Amy turned some knobs and pressed on the screen per Tails’ instructions until the watch emitted a low warbling. 

“Should be working now,” Tails guessed. It was hard to tell without anything to test it on. He started to trudge around, Amy close behind. After a few minutes, the watch’s buzzing was drowned out by its high-pitched beeping. “I think I found something.”

Amy kicked some snow around by her feet. To her surprise, a shiny, metallic shape emerged from the white ground. “That must be it,” she remarked, bending to pick it up. She expected it to give way easily, but it didn’t budge. Was it caught on something under the snow? Amy dug around the tightly packed snowfall, struggling to unearth the remote. Finally, she managed to get her hands around it. Was she misremembering, or was it a different shape than this? There was something sticking out of the side that she didn’t quite remember either. Antenna? Or some knobs?

Amy got both her hands around it and pulled as hard as she could, pulling up something unexpectedly heavy. She immediately dropped it and jumped back in fear when she realized what she’d unearthed. 

Metal Sonic’s arm stuck out of the ground now, it’s snake-like telescopic coils pulled loose from Amy’s force. Before she could think, Amy had summoned her hammer and taken a hard swing downward onto the appendage. She felt a shock as her weapon made contact with the ground, as if she’d hit something much harder than just a pile of snow.

“Amy! Is that what I think it is?” Tails asked in horror.

“I guess?” she yelled unintentionally, realizing what she’d done.

Within a few seconds, they could both hear a familiar whirring coming from under the blanket of snow. They scrambled back, recognizing it as Metal Sonic’s engine.  
The robot sat straight up suddenly, displacing the snow it was buried under. Its eyes were still dark.

“Tails, stay behind me…” She held her hammer up by her face.

Metal Sonic’s body whirred wildly for a few seconds before dying down to a whisper. Amy released some of the tension in her body, lowering her weapon slightly.  
“Is… Is it off?” Tails asked cautiously. They each took a step closer to examine it. 

The screen of Metal Sonic’s sclera abruptly turned on its two glowing lights. Its crimson eyes were suddenly trained on them, staring.

Tails jumped out of his skin. Amy brought her hammer back up to the offensive, but not without a terrified squeal. Metal Sonic seemed to be analyzing them. Short, high-pitched beeps emanated from its body as it stared for a few seconds. Then it turned its head to examine the arm that Amy had yanked out of the ground. The telescopic wire lay limply next to Metal Sonic’s body. The limb gyrated for a moment before retracting back swiftly. It turned its attention in the other direction. The three of them realized at once that Metal Sonic’s left arm was missing from its socket, no doubt buried under a few inches of snow.

Metal Sonic learned a few things as he looked at the two standing in front of him. He scanned their faces, searching his memory for any record of their encounters. He found Tails first – the file listed some of his specs as well as the note, “Tails: Intelligent but feeble. Master engineer.” What could that mean? He moved on to the girl, whose archived image appeared much younger than the one in front of him. “Amy Rose: Weak, loud- kind?” Metal Sonic’s confusion grew. Learning their names and random traits wasn’t helping him pinpoint his location or giving him any clues as to how he arrived there. His GPS wasn’t operational and most of his memory files were inaccessible. He moved on to examine his own body. Why was his arm extended? He reeled it in. What about his other arm? It was missing. He could sense it just a couple of inches beneath him and began digging.

After watching him for about a minute, Amy finally spoke up. “Hey! Sonic’s not here, so you can just leave!” she called to him from a few feet away.  
Metal Sonic pulled up his other arm. It hung limply in his grip. It appeared to be operational, but the socket was damaged, and he would be unable to reattach it. He turned his gaze back over to Tails. The boy was some sort of engineer, perhaps he could assist in making the necessary repairs. 

“Uh, why’s it looking at me like that?” Tails backed up. “It’s creepy…”

Metal Sonic stood up slowly. His right foot was twisted backward and hanging on by a single wire. It also appeared to be in need of repairs. He fixed his gaze on Tails and approached him.

“Stay right there!” Amy shouted. Her voice was shaky.

Metal Sonic stopped in his tracks. He turned his head, emitting a monotonous beep. Were they unable to help him? Perhaps if Tails was able to get a closer look…  
The robot shot his telescoping arm toward the pair, its other appendage lodged in its sharp fingers. Amy let out a sudden gasp, swinging her hammer wildly and colliding with its metallic hand. Metal Sonic’s fingers broke loose, sending its other arm flying sideways into the mountainside. There was a flash of light followed by a quick explosion as it hit the rocky wall. They all looked on at is happened, Metal Sonic appearing to be just as shocked as Amy and Tails.

He pulled back his right arm, the wire snaking on the ground toward him. Did she know his arm would erupt a missile upon impact? No, they both looked surprised. He turned back to her inquisitively.

Metal Sonic let out a series of high and low beeps as it stared back at the pair. To Amy, it sounded… confused? Could robots get confused? Come to think of it, that move didn’t seem like an attack. Why would Metal Sonic extend its arm to them when it could just as easily launch that attack from over there? It would have rushed them by now if it wanted them dead.

An idea popped into Amy’s head. “Hey! Can you tell us where we are?” she directed the question at Metal Sonic.

He shook his head. Were these two lost, too?

“Then… do you recognize who we are?”

Metal Sonic took a moment to analyze her inquiry. He seemed to know their names and a few things about them, but did he really recognize them? He had to search his failing memory just to find out that much. He concluded that he didn’t really know who they were and shook his head again.

Amy turned to tails, whispering. “I think it lost its memory…”

“Are you serious?” Tails responded.

They both looked back at Metal Sonic. It was just standing there, staring back stoically. 

“It hasn’t really attacked, right? I don’t think setting off that missile was intentional…”

“Seems like a trap to me,” Tails grumbled. 

“Hmm.” Amy took a step toward Metal Sonic, holding her hammer lower now. “We know where Sonic is! Don’t you want to fight him?”

“Amy! Don’t egg it on!”

Metal Sonic’s engine hummed a bit louder. Was she trying to pick a fight with him? He searched his memory for “Sonic.” All that came up was a corrupt file- sonic.rival. Inaccessible. Was it possible that they were enemies? But then why would he note Amy Rose as “kind”? He eventually shook his head in response to her question, not wanting to further damage his body.

“No?” Amy was astonished. Was this thing capable of lying? “What about… some repairs?” She shrugged.

Why did she sound just as confused as him? Was it possible that they were really enemies? He was in need of repairs, he concluded. Perhaps an investigation would shed some light on his situation. He nodded profusely so as not to be ambiguous. 

Amy chuckled awkwardly. “Ah… Okay.” I didn’t think he’d accept so easily, she thought.

“Amy,” Tails scolded, “what are you doing?”

She turned back to him. “Look, this could be our opportunity to get it on our side. Aren’t you sick of fighting it?” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Robots can be reprogrammed, right? I know you can do it.”

Tails frowned. The notion of taking in his best friend’s nemesis made him anxious. If Metal Sonic was dangerous, Sonic was doubly so. The last thing he wanted was for a fight to break out in his lab. “I really don’t know about this…”

“Trust me.” Amy finally put her hammer away. She trudged over to where the robot’s arm hit the ground and picked it up with a huff. “Woah, this is heavy,” she remarked. Amy dragged it over closer to Metal Sonic carefully. “No missiles this time, okay?”

Metal Sonic hummed a high-to-low beep in response. He didn’t even know that was going to happen the first time. What other memories was he missing? As the girl approached, he slowly took his arm back from her. He was deliberate in trying not to frighten her again. 

“Here you go,” she grunted, struggling to lift Metal Sonic’s heavy appendage into its grip. It must have weighed some 40 or 50 pounds. Its sharp fingers closed around the arm once again.

They both turned to look at Tails when his watch emitted some high-pitched noises. The boy was on his knees across the small valley, digging at the snow with his good hand. “I’ll fix it, but I’m not keeping it in my lab.” Hearing himself say those words out loud sounded ridiculous. 

“What- where are we supposed to keep it?”

“You want to take it, keep it in your house!” Tails found his remote and examined it. “Ugh, it’s all water-logged. Now I have to fix this, too.”

“Your cast is going to get ruined, quit digging around!”

“Fine. Let’s just go.” Tails stood up. “Hey, can you fly?” he directed his question at Metal Sonic. 

He stood there for a moment. Could he? His secondary engine began humming loudly, and he was able to lift himself off the ground. Everything appeared operational for flight.

“Great,” Tails sighed. “Can you take her, and follow me?”

“Woah, wait-“ Amy was about to object to being carried by Metal Sonic when it shoved its dismembered arm back into her grip and picked her up around the waist. She froze, dangling from Metal Sonic’s grip at its side. The heavy arm fell from her grasp. “I can’t carry it like this!” she complained.

What was the issue? It’s not like he could hold her any other way. Metal Sonic hovered back down to the ground, dropping her abruptly. 

She landed on her backside. “Hey! Be gentle,” she scowled back. It let out a long, low beep. “Hmm. Can you carry me on your back?” Metal Sonic nodded but stood there for a moment afterward. “Well, bend down, then! You’re too tall…”

Metal Sonic added “demanding” to his notes about the pink hedgehog. He kneeled, allowing her to climb over his back and wrap her grip over the front of his neck. His free hand unoccupied, he picked up his arm himself in preparation for flight.

“Okay… I guess I’m ready.” Amy nervously hoped Metal Sonic’s engine wouldn’t crap out mid-flight. Its body wasn’t exactly whole. “You’d better not drop me,” she grumbled.

“Great,” Tails responded sarcastically. “I can’t believe we’re doing this,” he mumbled to himself. Tails flicked himself up and took off towards the sky. “Follow me, to Amy’s place.” 

She wanted to shoot a mean look back his way but was too shocked by the sudden acceleration upward to do anything but hold on for dear life. The cold stung her from all angles as Amy hugged the metallic body with all her strength. She wasn’t usually afraid of flying, but there were so many factors at play to cause anxiety. Between the terror and the wind chill, she shivered profusely as they followed Tails towards the city. Flying was faster- it would take them just 15 minutes to return home, but it was just so uncomfortable. A little way into their flight, Amy’s chills subsided as Metal Sonic’s body heated up. She wondered if that was normal for it or if it was warming her on purpose.


	2. (Un)comfortable

The trio landed on the sidewalk near Amy’s house. She lived in a little round bungalow on the beach, steps away from the water. It was usually charming, but the unusually cold winter made the area frigid as the humidity rising from the sea made it feel colder than it really was. Metal Sonic knelt and Amy hesitantly slid off his warm back.

“Okay Amy, you need to keep this thing here until I can repair it.” Tails instructed.

“You can’t start now?”

“I have one functioning hand.” He looked annoyed.

“Well, so does he!” she scoffed.

Tails took a deep breath, frustrated. “You called it a he…”

Amy became flustered. “Well, that’s what it is!” She motioned to Metal Sonic. “I mean, I guess?”

“Look,” he sighed, “I need to fix this thing first.” Tails held up the remote. “Then I can take a look at, uh, him. It’s really important I fix this before anything.”  
Amy got the gist of what he was saying. That remote was built to disarm Metal Sonic. If the robot turned on them, they’d need to have it operational to avoid risk. She let out a sigh. “How long is it going to take?”

“Again, one hand.” Amy rolled her eyes at him and he returned the expression. “Just give me some time.” He flew up again, avoiding the short stairs to the boardwalk that lead to his own home just up the hill. “And don’t let Sonic find out!”

“Obviously,” she folded her arms. How am I going to manage that?

Once Tails had flown off, Amy turned back to her unlikely housemate. The realization that she hadn’t thought her plan through came over her all at once and she winced thinking about how she was going to pull it all off. “So…” she shrugged her folded arms. “Come in, I guess?” She walked past him to her doorway and beckoned for him to enter. Metal Sonic dragged his foot as he moved.

Amy had barely noticed back at the valley, but it was obvious now how much it was struggling to move on foot. “That looks like it hurts,” she said thoughtlessly, hanging up her coat by the doorway. Then it clicked. “Wait, does it hurt?”

Metal Sonic searched for an answer. It didn’t hurt him, per se, but he could feel the hindrance of losing his arm and breaking his foot. Organic life forms might call this “discomfort.” Neither shaking his head nor nodding seemed to satisfy the question.

A short, resonant beep emanated from Metal Sonic, but Amy had no clue what it meant. It just stood wordlessly in the open doorway, looming over her. Amy wondered how she was going to manage to communicate with this thing- it could understand her, but would she able to understand it? “Uh… So, can you close the door? It’s freezing.” 

Metal Sonic took another step in before turning all the way around to face the door. He reached out and pushed on it firmly with the back of his hand. It slammed as it hit the doorframe, followed by the distinct crack of wood. 

“Di-Did you just break my door?” Amy stammered. “You cannot use that freaky robot strength in here!”

The door closed with more force than Metal Sonic intended. He must have underestimated his strength, but he couldn’t remember ever having closed a door before. How much of his memory was he really missing? He turned his head toward Amy.

She recoiled a bit at his steely glare. “Sorry… for yelling…” She was just as unsure about how much he remembered, but she could easily recall his strength and ability for violence. Those glowing eyes reminded her of that. It was scary.

Metal Sonic noticed how uncomfortable she looked. It wouldn’t do him any good to alarm her when she’d offered her assistance. But all he did was look at her- was she going to be scared so easily?

Amy turned her attention to the door timidly. There was a small crack emerging on the wood from under the knob, but it looked fine otherwise. It was probably best to drop it.

“Anyway…” Amy wasn’t sure what else to say. She was no stranger to entertaining, but had no idea how robots usually occupied their time. “Tails might not be available to fix you until tomorrow.” At least, she hoped it would be as early as tomorrow. “So, I guess we can just relax for now,” she shrugged.  
Relax. That wasn’t an action Metal Sonic recognized. He turned the rest of his body to face her, tilting his head. That was an expression he somehow knew she’d understand. 

_He doesn’t know what relaxing is?_ , she asked herself. “Why don’t you sit on the couch? I can find us something to watch.” Amy motioned toward the living room in the center of her home. 

Metal Sonic held up his hand, still holding his detached arm.

“Oh, um…” Amy looked around for somewhere to store the limb. She couldn’t just leave it out in the open in case someone came by and saw it just sticking out of her umbrella holder. “Hmm. I guess you could put it in my storage closet for now. Follow me.” Just past the living room, Amy entered another door that lead to her bedroom. Closets lined either wall parallel to her bed. Metal Sonic dragged behind her as she motioned towards the closet nearest the entrance. “Just put it in the storage space,” she indicated.

It was even weirder having Metal Sonic in her own bedroom. She usually blushed at the idea of having a boy in there, but it was unclear whether she considered this guest a boy or not. The whole experience was so jarring.

Before they could find somewhere to store it, there was a knock at the door. Amy wasn’t expecting anyone. “Wait here,” she instructed. Her heart raced. Her half-baked plan to keep Metal Sonic hidden was already failing. Amy rushed to the front door, opening it just a crack. 

“Amy! Can I come in? This is heavy.” Cream was standing on the other side, hugging an oversized basket over the front of her chest. It eclipsed her face and seemed to obscure her vision.

“Cream! Uh, now’s not a good time-“

“Hold on!” Cream took a step forward. Amy had no choice but to let her in for fear of tripping her and sending the basket tumbling to the ground. The girl was familiar with Amy’s house and beelined to the kitchen, dropping the basket on the counter and her backpack by the kitchen table. “Oh, that was so heavy! Sorry to barge in.” She started unloading the contents.

“Oh, don’t worry about it,” Amy chuckled nervously. Her eyes darted to the bedroom door, which was still slightly ajar. “Hey, let me help you with that!” Amy practically ran into her kitchen and stood on the other side of the counter, trying to hide the living room and bedroom door from Cream. “So, what’s all this?”  
Cream was her usual chipper self. “Oh, you know mom. She sent me over with all this food. I thought we could have lunch!” 

“Oh, today’s not the best day…”

“Oh- really?” Cream’s eyes and ears drooped. “I kind of wanted to ask for your help with something…”

Amy looked on at her friend awkwardly. She wasn’t one to disappoint. Maybe she could get Cream to eat with her on the terrace. “Ah, I can’t say no to you, Cream. Let’s eat outside!”

Cream frowned. “But… it’s freezing out.”

She was right. Amy was beginning to panic again. “O-Oh, right! Uh- go ahead and set up! I’ll be right back!” Amy darted back to her bedroom, closing the door behind her. But once inside, she didn’t see Metal Sonic standing where she’d left him. The door to her storage closet was open. “Hey, are you in there?” she whispered. There was no audible response.

Amy entered the closet, which was really more of a narrow storeroom lined with shelves overflowing with art supplies and various crafting elements. She spotted Metal Sonic at the end of the tapered space, reaching up for something. “Hey! Be careful, you’ll-“

Metal Sonic was having trouble balancing considering the uneven weight distribution caused by his warped foot. While looking for an empty space to store his arm in the tightly packed closet, he spotted a small red toolbox at the very top of the farthest shelf. It may have been possible to make some of the repairs himself, and that box should have the necessary tools. He extended his arm to reach it as Amy called to him, but the sudden turn he forced his body to make as he met her gaze threw him off balance completely. Instinctively, he grabbed the shelf railing in vain to stop himself from falling over. All the added weight to the already overwhelmed top shelf immediately caused the supports to snap and sent it all crashing down. Several hard objects fell directly onto Metal Sonic’s head, making additional large clanks that made it sound like the whole building was collapsing.

“-knock it over…” Amy finished. Her jaw was on the floor along with all the tools. Then, all at once, she lost her temper. “What the hell? Haven’t you ever heard of a step ladder?!”

“Um, is everything okay?” Cream timidly entered the crowded space upon hearing all the commotion, worried for her friend.

“Cream! Yes, everything’s fine!” Amy turned her attention to her young friend, trying to usher her out of the storeroom.

“What happ-“ Cream froze, eyes wide. “Um, isn’t that…” the girl lifted her hand, pointing at Metal Sonic, who was trying to prop himself up, half-buried under all the fallen junk. Everything clanged around with the movement.

Amy slapped her palm to her face. That didn’t even last 15 minutes, she thought to herself shamefully. 

There was no explaining this away. Rather than lie, Amy decided to just let Cream in on her plan. She let out a long sigh. “Yes; I can explain.” She turned her attention over to Metal Sonic. “Hold on, I’ll help.”

He had managed to prop himself up on the wall but was trying to calculate a route to the door without causing any more destruction. He’d have to avoid everything scatted all over the narrow floor space. Amy began picking up, sliding whatever she could to the side to create a walkway. Being helped felt unfamiliar to him somehow. Shouldn’t everything be unfamiliar with no memory? This seemed different.

“Come on,” Amy got up, clapping the dust from her hands. “Everyone at the kitchen table, let’s go.” 

Cream scuttered out, keeping an eye on the robot until it was out of sight. Amy beckoned for Metal Sonic to follow her.

Cream shrank into her chair. The last time she’d encountered the robot was terrifying. She remembered it transforming into a terrible monster and wreaking havoc as Sonic and his friends fought it. She’d often hear about their ongoing battles with it from Amy and Tails, adding to her fear.

“It’s okay, Cream. I know this is strange.” Amy sat next to her. She placed a hand on the girl’s shoulder as Metal Sonic dragged behind. Amy motioned for it to sit.  
“Okay,” she sighed. “Cream, Metal Sonic seems to have lost his memory. Tails and I found it today and we’re going to help it get fixed up.”  
“You mean, he doesn’t remember-“

“Probably not!” Amy interrupted. Her eyes pleaded Cream not to go any further. Metal Sonic didn’t seem to be aware they were supposed to be enemies. It wouldn’t behoove them if it found out. “Just, treat him like you would a friend, okay?” 

Metal Sonic stood by the table, analyzing Cream. He searched what memory he had left for her name and face but only found an outdated photo. This girl was still a child but a few years older. She looked just as terrified in his memory as she did sitting in the flesh.

Cream was visibly uncomfortable. Metal Sonic hadn’t sat, but it was staring at her silently. “Why are you looking at me like that…?”

Amy whipped her head over to Metal Sonic. “Quit looming over people! Sit down.” She pointed at the chair.

He pulled it out and sat. His knees stuck out awkwardly from the low chair.

“Thank you.” Amy took a deep breath, collecting herself. “And sorry I yelled- again.” She looked away, embarrassed. She blew up more often than she’d like to admit.

Gratitude. Something even less familiar. The notes under Amy Rose’s photo were beginning to make sense. Loud but kind. He forgave her by letting out a high tone. He wasn’t sure she’d understand but was a bit more assured when he noticed a small smile on her face.

“Hey, why don’t we get to know each other over lunch?” Amy directed this more to Cream, figuring that Metal Sonic wasn’t exactly a glutton. 

Cream still looked unsure but agreed. She carefully unpacked her mother’s artfully crafted lunch boxes along with a thermos of tea and a winter fruit pie. There was enough for at least four people.

“Wow, Vanilla really outdid herself! You have to take some muffins back as thanks.” Amy flashed Cream a genuine smile that relaxed her a bit and helped cut the tension.

There wasn’t much for Metal Sonic to do as the girls ate. He watched as they chatted a bit but it wasn’t as if he could join in. He mostly idled there, listening to their small talk. The younger one was looking calmer now. It seemed to be a common theme that people were frightened of him at first sight. That feeling was familiar. Had he done something to frighten them? Perhaps he just looked terrifying? He couldn’t remember what he looked like.

“So, is he going to stay here while he gets repaired?” Cream asked after some time.

“Yeah. Tails, er… asked me to hold onto him-uh, it?” Amy turned to Metal Sonic. She wasn’t sure how to approach her next question. “Are you…” she gestured vaguely.

Metal Sonic could not discern what she was trying to ask him. He tilted his head to show he did not understand, and she huffed back awkwardly.

“Are you a boy?” Cream interjected. Amy reddened immediately at the invasive question.

The whirring of his engine intensified slightly as Metal sonic analyzed this. All these people kept calling him “it.” That didn’t quite feel right. “He” felt better. That seemed close enough, so he nodded.

Amy sighed in relief. She wasn’t sure it- he- would understand that either.

“I have an idea!” Cream reached for the backpack she’d thrown nearby. She pulled out a small whiteboard and a marker, uncapping it and sliding both over to Metal Sonic. 

He picked up the marker and examined it. Writing also didn’t feel familiar, but he could understand letters and words. It shouldn’t be an issue. He was about to give it a shot when he realized he didn’t actually remember his name, either. He exuded a low beep in annoyance. 

Amy reached over, gently placing her hand on his to get his attention. “Can I try?”

He looked back up and nodded, turning the marker over to her. She wrote down the word “Metal” and turned the board so he could read. He recognized that name as his own immediately. Turning toward them both, he nodded and let out a pleased chime. Amy and Cream both smiled back at this, any tension that had hung over them now totally dissipated. These people knew him- at least they knew his name. There was a sense of what one might call “comfort” in that.


	3. Jagged

Amy and Cream bustled around the kitchen, picking up after their lunch. Metal sat, watching and listening, occasionally looking back at the small whiteboard with his name on it. He pondered about his past silently; wondered what his relationship with Tails, Amy, and Cream had been. What little he could remember only added to the mystery, but for now their simple goodwill was more than appreciated.

“So Cream, what did you need help with?” Amy asked her.

Cream was drying the last of the dishes and handing them to Amy to stack away in the cupboard. “Oh, thanks for reminding me. Actually, I have some schoolwork I need help with. Mom was having trouble with it, too.” Cream didn’t attend a physical school but worked with a tutor occasionally to complete some remote learning at her mother’s behest.

“What kind of work?”

“Some algebra. I find it sort of confusing.”

Amy squirmed uncomfortably. She hadn’t exactly had a formal education and was more well-versed in language and history than math and science anyway. “Don’t you think this is more of a Tails question?”

“He can be so impatient!” Cream huffed. “I asked him for help a few weeks ago but he got frustrated with me.”

“I can see that,” Amy sighed. Tails was passionate about his work to a fault. He was good-natured and caring, but a strong teacher he was not. The boy was easily exasperated when others failed to keep up with him and generally preferred to work on his projects alone. “You know he means well, Cream. He doesn’t realize what a weird little genius he is,” she giggled.

“I guess so. But do you think you could help me?” Cream pleaded.

Amy shrugged. “I’ll try. But let’s ask him if we get stuck anyway.”

The girls finished clearing up and sat back at the kitchen table with Cream’s notebooks. Metal watched them read from some worksheets and try to work out some problems. Amy guided her through the first two, challenging Cream to finish the equations.

“Okay, let me check if that’s right…” Amy wasn’t totally sure she knew how to solve it either, but was pleased when the answers matched. “It is! Good job, Cream,” she beamed at her friend.

Seeing this, Metal scraped away at the writing on his whiteboard and followed along as they read the next equation out loud.

Amy cleared her throat. “Okay, write this down. ‘5×2 + 6x = 3, solve for x.’ Hmm. Let’s take a look at your notes and see if we can figure this one out…”

It took Metal a second to solve it, and a few more to write it out on the little white tablet. He chimed at the girls, holding up his work for them to see.  
_x=-3/5 ± (2√6)/5_

Cream looked up from her notes to examine the whiteboard. “Is that right, Amy?”

“Let me see… Yeah! That’s the answer.” She turned to Metal with an impressed smile. “You’re like a walking calculator, Metal.”

She said his name. She seemed proud of him. That was a strange feeling- but not a negative one. He chimed again as a sense of enjoyment overtook him.

“I wish I could do that! But I have to show my work and I’m not sure where to start…” Cream returned to her notes, trying to understand the steps to take. 

Amy put down the worksheet. “What did you do first, Metal?”

He searched his recent memory for the calculations and scraped the answer off the whiteboard to make way for his response.

“Hey Cream, doesn’t that look a lot like this?” Amy pointed out a sample in Cream’s notes that used a similar structure to Metal’s.

“Oh, I think you’re right.” Cream wrote down what she understood to be the next step to solving the problem and showed it to him. “Is this how you did the next part?”

Her writing matched his earlier calculations and he nodded. It was impressive that she picked it up that quickly, he thought.

“Look at you, Cream! You already know more than I do,” Amy giggled.

She watched as Cream and Metal completed the problem together, matching up each step of the process. It took her a few minutes, but Cream matched Metal’s work exactly each time, arriving at the correct answer. Amy was incredibly relieved at his help- she wasn’t convinced she’d be able to solve it on her own, much less guide her friend through the process. The three answered a few more questions together over the next hour; Amy mostly reading from the answer key to confirm their responses.

“That was the last problem. Finally, that’s out of the way!” Cream cheered. “You guys are lifesavers.”

“I would’ve been useless after the first two problems,” Amy chuckled. “Maybe I should get a tutor, too.”

“You have Metal; I bet he knows a lot of stuff.” Cream responded, packing away her schoolwork.

“I don’t want to make a habit of it…” Amy trailed off. She noticed how dirty the whiteboard had become. Metal had been wiping his palm over it roughly and left scratch marks and marker smudges on the surface. “I think we should get you a new white board.”

“Don’t worry about it, I have another one at home. Metal can keep it! Also, this might come in handy for erasing.” Cream pulled a small cloth out of the front pocket of her bag and reached over the table to hand it to the robot.

He moved to grab it from her hand but stopped. He noticed how his sharp fingers had damaged the tablet. What if he scratched her, too? Metal outstretched his palm for her to drop it in instead.

Outside, the day had grown dim. It was still early, but the snowfall intensified over the last hour to create a dense veil that darkened the house. Visibility was low. It was a minor snowstorm, but Amy still worried about Cream’s return home.

“Hey Cream, why don’t you stay a while until the snow lightens up?” she suggested.

Cream peered through Amy’s sliding glass door off the side of the living room. “Oh! I didn’t realize it was so snowy out…”

“Why don’t we put on a movie to pass some time?”

“Hmm…” Cream pondered. She wasn’t really in the mood to watch anything. “I have a better idea! Let’s play dress up- like old times!”

Amy groaned. “Don’t you think we’re a little old for that?” It had been at least 3 years since they raided Amy’s closet for an impromptu fashion show. The girls had spent many a rainy day during Cream’s childhood arranging outfits.

“Metal’s never played,” Cream reasoned.

Amy scoffed playfully. “I really don’t think my clothes will suit him.”

Cream pouted in response. Her pleading eyes glistened in the dim light, growing ever wider. Her fist pressed to her round cheek as she made direct eye contact with Amy.

Amy rolled her eyes. “I taught you that trick.”

Cream abandoned her pitiful façade just as quickly, clicking her tongue.

“But, I guess there’s not much else to do,” Amy finished.

A look of glee filled the young rabbit’s eyes. She shot up from the table and twirled its perimeter to stop next to Metal. “Come on, let’s find you something to wear!” She tugged on his arm which failed to budge.

Surprised at the sudden contact, Metal turned his gaze to Cream’s delicate hands around his arm. After a moment, he managed to prop himself up without it, still struggling to balance as she attempted to pull him toward the bedroom.

“Be gentle, Cream. His foot is messed up.”

“Oh, right! Sorry, I’ll go at your pace,” the girl beamed at him. She dragged him slowly across the living room into Amy’s room, detailing what color scarf she thought would suit him, and adding that maybe a hat would look good, too.

Amy chuckled to herself as she took in the unusual sight of a young girl attempting to lug a clunky robot into a makeshift fashion show. She cleared some eraser shavings from the table and soon followed.

\-------------

It was as if a tornado had blown through Amy’s closet with the express purpose of littering as many clothes around the room as possible. Amy sighed thinking about how she had two messes to clean up now. Her and Metal Sonic watched from the bed; he sat at the edge while Amy crossed her legs and hugged a large pillow in front of her chest. Cream had tried on just about every dress, every blouse, and each pair of shoes that Amy owned. She’d also managed to amass a pile of silk scarves around Metal Sonic’s neck, insisting that layering was all the rage. Cream completed his ensemble by placing a wide-brimmed straw boater atop his head. He looked a bit like a hat rack.

Amy turned to address Metal. “So, how you holding up?”

Metal didn’t look at her but let out a melodic grunt. Amy wasn’t sure what it meant but his stoic gaze surrounded by dainty accessories made her laugh.

“Amy, do you remember this?” Cream excitedly held up two intertwined clothes hangers housing a long pink tank top and a matching pair of flared joggers.

“Oh, wow- that old thing. I wasn’t sure I still had it.”

“I don’t fit into mine anymore,” Cream complained.

“Try this one on then.” 

Cream slipped back into the closet to change and Amy took it as an opportunity to get a head start on picking up. It had stopped snowing and there was only maybe an hour of sunlight left- it was time Cream got back home.

When she emerged wearing the athletic set, Cream spun around and posed. “What do you think?”

“The pants are still a little long, but it looks great on you. Why don’t you keep it?”

The girl’s eyes twinkled. “Really? You’d let me have it?”

Amy shrugged. “It doesn’t fit me anymore anyway.” Five years had passed since she last wore the set and Amy had grown a couple of inches taller in that time. It was enough that the pants now sat atop her ankles awkwardly. “Now get changed to your clothes, you should get home before dark.”

Cream thanked her profusely and disappeared back into the wardrobe for the last time. Amy hung as much as she could on the clothes hangers that were strewn about and laid it all on the edge of the bed.

“Do you mind?” She motioned to the hat on Metal’s head. He looked up momentarily and gently lifted it from around his ears to hand to her. “Let me help you with these.” Amy unraveled each of the silky scarves from around him, being careful not to snag the fabric on his pointed shoulders. It was in vein, however, as one of the corners of a gauzy red handkerchief caught around his left side where the tear from his missing arm was jagged. “Oh, shoot…” Amy lamented softly. Metal realized this and hung his head timidly.

When Cream came out, she held up yet another hanger. “Hey Amy, what’s this?”

A bomber-style jacket hung from the plastic frame. It was made of supple black and white satin and adorned with an embroidered rose emblem over the heart.

“Oh…” Amy turned and examined it. “I thought this would make me look tough, but I could never fill it out right,” she giggled. “I just never really wore it.”

“That’s a shame, it’s so nice.” Cream gazed at the jacket, admiring the floral patch. Then she looked up and caught sight of Metal Sonic, who was still sitting quietly on the bed. “Hey, I bet it would look nice on Metal,” she smiled.

“Oh, Cream, don’t bother him with that…”

She approached Metal anyway, holding up the piece. “Would you like to try it on?”

Metal Sonic took a closer look at the soft jacket. It was padded lightly around the shoulders. He stood up then, holding his hand out to her.

Cream gasped with joy, running around the back of the lanky robot. “Hold your arm back, actually!” She had to stand on the bed to slide it over him completely. “What do you think?”

Metal limped toward the full-length mirror that stood next to the wardrobe. He’d momentarily caught sight of himself in it earlier, but this was the first time he really examined his body. He observed his pointy nose and ears. His long, sharp limbs. The noticeable scratch in the paint at the top of his head and the exposed wires that dragged under his right leg. He was frightening. More than that- he was dangerous. Metal had taken the jacket in the hopes it would obscure some of his edges. The left side of it laid limply past the shoulder, but the jacket fit him otherwise and served to soften his appearance. The girls crowded around him suddenly, singing praises.

“It fits you perfectly, Metal,” remarked Amy.

“You look so cute!” Cream giggled.

Amy reached over to zip the jacket most of the way up for him and smoothed it over his shoulders. “I think you should keep it- if you want to that is.”

They both looked up at him expectantly. The unanticipated praise had moved Metal. A sense of nervous joy overcame him and although his expression couldn’t change, he fixed his gaze on the three of them in the mirror and nodded with unquestionable excitement. Metal then placed a palm gingerly atop Cream’s head as she giggled and cheered.

Amy packed up the muffins she’d promised Cream to take home and walked her to the door. Metal joined Amy in seeing her out, imitating the girl as she waved back at the pair. Once Cream was out of sight, Amy closed the door gently so as not to worsen the crack in the wood. Metal was reminded of his strength then, undertaking that he would continue to act tenderly as long as he was going to be under the care of the kind pink girl and her companions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I post 1-2 days early on Tumblr @bimboamyrose. Stay tuned for more, and thanks for reading!


	4. Stubborn

Ch. 4: Stubborn 

The evening was spent organizing Amy’s closets. She’d tasked Metal with handing her clothes hangers from across the room as she straightened up her wardrobe and later did the same for him as he stacked her tools back up on the high shelf of her storage space. At least his telescopic arm was coming in useful, even if he could do little more than stand still to avoid losing his balance. 

The dreary day gave way to a clear, chilly evening. Amy invited her house guest to sit on the porch with her for her nightly routine of sipping hot chocolate and stargazing. Glistening snow contradicted the beachy atmosphere, thick white blankets draping over palm trees and obscuring sandy ground. It was perfectly tranquil, silent but for the gentle mechanical whirring of Metal’s body.

Amy sat on a lawn chair wrapped tightly in a velvety blanket, knees to her chest. “If Tails isn’t available to fix you tomorrow, maybe we can at least try to repair your foot so you can stand upright.” 

Metal had planted himself on the seat next to hers. The contrast between his disturbing, sharp figure and her endearing and petite frame was as striking as the scenery. He crossed his busted leg over his good one, assessing the damage to his foot. He was not confident a self-repair would be successful, but it was always a possibility. He turned to her and nodded. Amy’s gentle eyes mirrored the starry sky. The calmness in Metal turned to a moderate excitement at the charming sight and it seemed almost to remind him of something.

“So, Metal, do you remember anything? Like, at all?”

He ripped himself out of his enchantment to process her question. Searching through his fragmented memory turned up thousands of inaccessible files. What little was left held mostly primary data with snippets of information. He found pictures and short bios of people he didn’t recognize and the name “EGGMAN” plastered across a repair protocol. Searching for that name just brought up several more corrupt files.

Metal reached for the tablet-sized whiteboard that was sitting on the garden table in front of them. He wrote down “VERY LITTLE” in his neat, mechanical handwriting and showed it to Amy.

She gazed directly into his eyes now, hoping to find some indication of whether Metal Sonic was being truthful in his unchanging eyes. “Do you remember me?”

Amy had asked him earlier if he recognized her and he denied it in his haste. But spending a few hours with the girl teased his memory like a word at the tip of one’s tongue; Metal was sure he knew her somehow. “FAMILIAR,” he wrote finally.

“Familiar, huh?” Amy finished her warm drink, setting the mug down in front of her. _Not surprising, all things considered. But what does he really know?_ She noticed that Metal was quickly erasing his tablet and writing something new. Amy couldn’t keep herself from gasping when she caught sight of it again.

“WHO IS EGGMAN?”

She jerked the other way, hiding her shock. Does he remember that he works for Eggman? _It must be part of his programming or something. I need to tell Tails._ She decided to bluff. “Let’s, uh, see if we can find out. I think it’s time for bed.” She shot out of her cozy seat and back into the house before the cold could nip her.

Metal Sonic sat unmoving for a moment, perplexed at her sudden gesture. He propped himself up, tablet still in hand, as he drug his feet through the threshold of the backdoor and slid the door closed as gently as he could manage. He watched Amy toss her blanket over the back of the couch, then adjust and smooth it so it looked only partially like it was thrown there haphazardly. A strange maneuver.

“So, uh, you can go into sleep mode I guess?” She didn’t have the slightest idea what robots did at night or if he even needed to recharge. She was met once again with Metal’s unwavering stare; though it didn’t seem so spooky after the day they’d spent together. “Do you sleep?”

Metal simply nodded. He didn’t exactly sleep, but his instinct was to sit idle for a few hours to conserve energy. He was beginning to find that a close-enough answer would be satisfactory.

Amy was surprised but also relieved that she wouldn’t have to worry about him all night. “Oh- Well, is the couch okay?”

He came over and lowered himself onto the sofa, sitting upright and nodding.

“Okay, well- goodni-” Before she could finish, Metal’s eyes had gone dark. _I guess that solves that._ There was nothing more to do but turn in for the night.

\-----------------------------------

The following morning, Amy was startled out of her usual groggy walk into the kitchen when she noticed Metal Sonic’s sharp form sitting at the kitchen table, staring solidly out the back door. She’d expected to have to wake him up or something but it looked like he had been there for some time. He turned to face her abruptly and her heart jumped once again. 

“Oh, you’re awake- good morning.” Amy chuckled awkwardly. “Have you… been up long?”

Metal nodded. The morning sunrise activated his sensors. It was closer to 8 AM now and he’d been doing little more than sitting since dawn.

“Sorry, must have been boring.” Amy made her way past him and into the kitchen to make her quick breakfast of toast and coffee. Metal seemed to stare at her the entire time, which made her self-conscious. “I... don’t eat much in the morning,” she explained anxiously . Not sure why he’d care…

Metal Sonic had been analyzing Amy’s every move for the past several minutes. He spent his time awake pondering on the wistful feelings he’d experienced as they sat on the veranda late last night. The exploration of his memory was in vain and he instead tried to force himself to remember, but it was no use. Why was she so familiar? Perhaps observing her would jog his memory.

She took a seat across from him, eating uncomfortably as he looked through her. Amy tried her best to smile. “So, is there anything you’d like to do this morning?”

The robot finally broke his fierce concentration to respond by pointing at his left arm socket.

“Ah…” Amy answered hesitantly. “Tails hasn’t gotten back to me yet.”

He pointed down toward his foot instead.

Amy inhaled deeply, nervous about the prospect of trying to make repairs herself. But she had said they could try, so she agreed dubiously. “Let’s give it a shot.”

Metal turned his attention from her to the glass door where some movement caught his eye. Amy followed his gaze, spotting a small bluebird landing on one of her lawn chairs.

“Wow, it’s rare to see them out in the cold. I guess spring is around the corner.” Amy smiled warmly at the sight. It had been an unusually long winter and the small snowstorm that passed the night before wasn’t exactly indicative of the cold subsiding. Yet the evening frost now began puddling over the otherwise tropical scenery. It was always the coldest just before seasons changed. She turned back to her guest enthusiastically. “Let’s fix that leg of yours!”

Optimism soon turned to frustration, however, as the tangle of wires and bent hinges that held the robot’s foot in place confounded her. The neat little workstation she’d set up on her kitchen table was now a messy array of tools and bolts. She’d managed to worsen the damage in the process, but any time Metal would make a sound or reach toward something Amy would huff and snatch tools out of his hand. Getting annoyed himself, Metal finally resolved to pull his entire leg away to keep her from making it any worse. Amy refused to let go of his foot, however, and the last of the wires that were holding the appendage in place finally snapped, severing his foot off his body completely. 

“Ugh- look what you made me do!”

Metal let out a series of high and low beeps that were meant to offend. She returned that with a sour look.

“I told you to sit still! Ugh!” Amy shoved the severed foot into his grasp and stomped into her bedroom. Metal could hear crashing as she grumbled and pushed things around her storage closet roughly. The girl stormed back into the room with an enormous roll of duct tape and knelt back beside Metal. “Give me your foot, I’m fixing this for good,” she demanded.

Metal emitted a low grumble. He held his foot above his head, out of her reach.

“You think I can’t reach up there?” Amy stared for a moment, challenging Metal. Then she suddenly shot back up and lunged for his hand. “Quit being stubborn and let me fix it!”

 _He_ was the stubborn one? Enraged, he extended his arm up towards the ceiling, playing keep away. She tugged fruitlessly on the telescopic cable. 

“You wanna lose another arm?!” 

Before he could make a response, Amy’s communicator rang from the other room. They both turned their attention in the direction of the jingle. Amy let out a frustrated sigh and tossed the roll of duct tape aside to answer the call as Metal watched her disappear wordlessly past the door. While she lingered there for a few minutes, he pulled his arm back and sat silently once more. He looked from his dismembered foot to the shiny duct tape and back again. He supposed it would be better than nothing.

Amy sauntered back into the living room area with her nose up. “That was Tails. Lucky for you, he’s an actual engineer and he can actually fix you.” She crossed her arms defensively.

Metal Sonic rolled his eyes but reluctantly offered his foot back to her.

“Did you just- You’ve been sitting here expressionless for a whole day and the first emotion you show is that?” She snatched his foot out of his grasp. “Unbelievable.” Amy continued muttering under her breath while she taped his leg and foot back together. “There! Not that it matters, Tails is about to fix it anyway,” she scoffed. “At least it won’t fall off on the way there…”

He looked down at his “repaired” foot. It did seem to at least be attached to him, which was marginal improvement. Metal stood up slowly, attempting to disperse his weight evenly. It was a bit shaky and he couldn’t exactly bend his ankle, but he managed to limp around rather than drag his foot behind him. 

“Well?” Amy looked at him inquisitively.

Metal reached for the little whiteboard that he’d left on the kitchen counter. He set it in front of him and scribbled something down quickly, holding it up for Amy to see. He turned away as he did, seemingly embarrassed. “THANK YOU” it read in slightly less neat handwriting than usual.

Amy’s cheeks puffed when she saw it. Her face flushed and she, too, avoided eye contact. “You’re welcome.” She pouted, her cheeks growing ever warmer as she realized what an outburst she’d had. “And, you know… sorry,” she finally added.

 _Stubborn_ , Metal Sonic added to his description of Amy Rose in his memory bank. _Temperamental_. He looked back down at his foot, noticing how neatly she had wrapped the tape around him- smooth, with no folds or creases. _Well-meaning_ , he appended. The fix wasn’t perfect but it was certainly more comfortable than the alternative. _Thoughtful_.

Amy composed herself, releasing a deep sigh. “Grab your jacket and your arm. Let’s head to Tails’ place so he can get you fixed up for real,” she smirked. She knew her solution was janky, but genuinely hoped it would at least help keep him together. 

Metal Sonic complied with this. He found his arm strewn into the corner of the storeroom and gave Amy a bit of a side-eye, knowing she’d knocked it there in her earlier rage. She pretended not to notice this. He was about to head out the front door when Amy stopped him. “You’re not going to wear your jacket? I know you don’t get cold, but…”

He looked to the coat rack where he’d placed it the evening before. It didn’t agree with his telescopic arm when it was extended so he opted to remove it before helping Amy clean up her closet. 

“I’ll help you get it on if you want.”

He nodded back, dropping his other arm momentarily as she slid it over him and zipped the front. Amy smiled at him then with unexpected warmth. 

She was musing silently about his change in character. Overnight, Metal went from a nightmarish enemy to a placid houseguest. Amy thought he could be reprogrammed into becoming her ally, but was now realizing that this robot with all his hinges and bolts was a bona fide person. She’d always thought he was angry by default, encountering him only in battle or other tense situations; but seeing how Metal could become elated and annoyed and show gratitude gave her hope that he wasn’t just an emotionless machine to be modified. Instead, he was a potential new friend.


	5. The Right Thing

The afternoon was better described as crisp than frosty. Signs that spring was approaching appeared in the cloudless sky and dissolving frost. The sun sat high up in the sky, indicative of the slowly lengthening days. Amy would have insisted on taking the scenic route to reach Tails’ lab, but feared the tape holding Metal Sonic’s foot in place wouldn’t hold up in the sloshing snow. Flying up the hill appeared to be the safest option.

The pair repeated yesterday’s maneuver of having Amy attach herself to Metal’s back. This time, however, there was the added challenge of navigating as the cold wind stung her eyes. The windchill they experienced in the significantly colder air blew through the lighter coat she’d chosen to wear due to the lack of frost. Amy began shivering.

Less than a minute later, she could begin to feel the warmth building up in Metal’s body again. He also slowed down to walking speed in the air to allow her to open her eyes. Metal’s back felt toasty against her and she could feel her tense shoulders relax a bit. She sighed in relief. “Hey, are you doing this on purpose?” she wondered aloud.

Metal sort of shrugged his shoulder, not wanting to disturb Amy’s grip around his neck. It did take a bit more energy and the warming feature was probably reserved for times much more frigid than this, but the trip was short. After all, she had given him some comfort, so why not return the favor?

“Well, thanks.” Amy leaned her head over his back, resting a cheek on his satin-clad shoulder to get a better look at the landscape. They were far higher off the ground that was necessary by the time she noticed. “Head down there,” she pointed. They descended much slower this time, and by the time they landed near the entrance, it had taken longer than if they’d just walked. The view as they approached, however, trumped that of even her regular scenic route. 

Amy and Metal walked toward the entrance, but the door swung wide open before she could get near the doorbell. “What are you doing?” Tails peeked his head out the door to take a nervous look around. “Get inside.”

Amy scoffed. “Nice to see you, too.”

The door slammed shut behind them automatically. Tails was already most of the way down the hall when he took a sharp turn into a door to the left. 

_What’s eating him?_ Amy followed the boy with Metal Sonic limping close behind. They turned into his sprawling laboratory, where Tails stood behind a series of screens. “Tails? You alright?”

He looked up from his command center nervously. “Did anyone see you?”

“How should I know?”

“Amy, if anyone finds out-”

“What, Tails? They’re gonna reprimand me?” she rolled her eyes.

Tails grumbled. He didn’t want to say too much in front of Metal Sonic for fear of jogging its memory. But what if Eggman had spotted them? Surely he must be looking for his weapon by now. And if anyone else on the team had seen the two of them flying around it could have been mistaken for another hostage situation. Tails pointed directly at the robot. “Go sit on that table over there.”

Amy followed Metal as he sat on the cold bench. It looked like an operating table, surrounded by a tangled web of wires and machinery. She was nervous for him. Amy trusted that Tails would know what to do but worried that his fear of Metal Sonic would cloud his intentions. 

Tails mashed the keys on his computer aggressively with his one functioning hand. “Amy, I need you to come over here.”

She looked back at her steely companion. Amy flashed a smile and placed her hand briefly on Metal’s shoulder. “You’ll be fixed in no time,” she reassured before joining Tails behind his small command center.

A few keystrokes later, a sheer green forcefield appeared like a bubble around the table, encapsulating Metal Sonic and several of the nearby machines inside. He looked up at the glowing shield curiously. 

Amy gasped at the sudden appearance of it. “Tails, what’s the shield for?”

“So he can't hear us, or get out.” He turned to his teammate with a huff. “Have you thought this plan out at all? How do you think Sonic is gonna react when he finds out?”

Amy shuffled on her feet nervously. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “But look, Cream and I spent some time with him-”

“You got Cream involved?” Tails was raising his voice indignantly.

“She came over and saw him, okay! And it went fine. It’s like they became friends.”

Tails scoffed harshly. “Look, Amy, I know you always want to see the good in everything, but this is dangerous. Even if we get that thing on our side, who’s to say Eggman won’t just capture Metal Sonic and reprogram it again? He’s done it before.”

“We’ll just have to leave a lasting impression, then,” Amy responded matter-of-factly. 

“You can’t be serious…”

“I am! Look, we don’t have to reprogram Metal, he can learn this stuff on his own.” Amy reasoned. “He has real emotions and stuff. I don’t know how to explain it.” She looked through the glowing bubble and met eyes with Metal, who was looking to her inquisitively. He held his severed arm out, turning his head. Amy waved back with a kind smile. “He just needs some friends. I think he’s capable of being good.”

Tails watched their interaction with fascination. It was almost upsetting to see Metal Sonic sitting innocently in his lab after all the strife and injury his team had suffered at the robot’s hands over the years. He looked down at his own broken wrist, ears drooping. “So your plan is to just become roommates with that thing? After everything that’s happened?”

“Look, he needs to decide for himself what he wants. You have to restore his memory.”

Tails glared back at her. “You _want_ him to remember? 

“It doesn’t count if we force him.” Amy gazed at Tails wet eyes, a soft pout spread across her lips. “Wouldn’t you want a second chance?” 

Tails could feel his face becoming hot. “And what if I refuse?”

“Tails, you’re the smartest person I know. You could deactivate Metal if he became a real threat.” Amy’s sweet eyes narrowed. “But if you don’t help me with this, I’ll find someone who will.”

She could be convincing when she wanted to be- or maybe “manipulative” was the better word. Tails more than understood that Amy was capable of putting herself in harm’s way if she thought it was the right thing to do. “I don’t know how long it’ll take to fix. It could be weeks.” He hesitantly clicked some keys and the forcefield fell away. “I’ll do it, but we have to tell the team. We couldn’t keep it a secret, anyway.”

Amy nodded in agreement. “Thank you. It’ll work, you’ll see.” She turned and jogged back over to Metal, who was irately chiming something at her. “Sorry! Just had to take care of some business first. Relax, we’re gonna fix you now.”

Tails couldn’t believe how nonchalant Amy was being about everything. Metal Sonic had probably caused her the most tauma out of the team, having kidnapped her at a young age. But for however fierce she could be, Amy was pure and forgiving in nature. Tails always thought that was admirable- if a little stupid. He took a deep breath in preparation for what he was about to embark on. 

The boy awkwardly approached Metal Sonic, walking past him to pull some wires from a nearby machine. “So, I guess we’re gonna fix you and try to get your memory back.” He remembered what Amy said about being friendly and struggled to say something polite. “Nice-uh- jacket? Wait, isn’t that Amy’s?”

“It’s Metal’s now. He looks better in it,” she smiled.

“Right. ‘He.’” Tails turned to address Metal Sonic directly. “I’m gonna fix you, but I also want to copy your memory so I can figure out how to restore it. We have to turn you off for that. Understand?”

Metal Sonic looked to Amy for guidance. She seemed to know the boy well, but Metal was unsure that Tails was comfortable repairing him. The boy seemed hesitant. “Don’t worry, you’re in good hands. If anyone can fix you, it’s Tails,” she reassured. Metal turned back to Tails and nodded.

“Okay. You should lie back, and you can put the arm down for now.”

Metal Sonic complied. Tails stuck several electromagnetic wires on his head and core. He could see Amy standing back, flashing him a nervous smile. He listened as Tails brought out the same remote he was holding when they met the day before. Metal wasn’t able to catch what he was saying before the lights in his eyes scrambled and went out.

“Metal? Are you awake?” Amy shook his shoulder but the robot didn’t respond. It was eerie seeing him so lifeless now.

“He’s off. Don’t worry about us, I’m going to run some scans and see what I can learn. It’ll take a few hours, so I’ll call you when I’m ready.”

Amy nodded confidently. She knew Tails would do the right thing - and hoped that in the end, Metal Sonic would, too. 

\-------

Amy took her time for the rest of the afternoon to run errands. She did some shopping in town and picked up groceries, returning home past sunset. She waited a few more hours for a call back from Tails but was beginning to think he’d keep making repairs overnight. It was nearly 11 PM before she received the call and had to brave the frigid night.

Tails didn’t answer the door personally- it opened on its own by his command. Amy hurried inside to warm up. She found her teammate at the workstation in his lab, magnifying goggles over his eyes. Metal was in the same spot- still off. 

“Hey Amy.” Tails didn’t look up from whatever he was fiddling with.

“Hey. How did it go?” Amy approached the workbench, peering over Tail’s shoulder. He was screwing one of the panels of Metal’s hand shut with the help of a vice to hold it in place. 

“Well, I was able to take a look around his head, but…” Tails flipped up his goggles and met Amy’s eyes. “There’s this sort of firewall there blocking access to a lot of whatever’s in there. And apparently there’s a failsafe, like a protocol in case Metal Sonic lost his memory, but it didn’t work.” He shrugged and scrunched his eyebrows at the mystery.

“Really? What was the protocol?”

“Seems like it was meant to help him navigate back to Eggman’s base for repairs, but his GPS isn’t working either. And that’s another thing- if I fix it, he’ll be trackable.”

“So he’s not right now?”

“Nope. And I don’t think we don’t want him to be.” Tails swiveled his chair to face the robot behind them. “But that doesn’t mean Eggman won’t still come looking…”

Amy scoffed. “He’s left him to rot for months before. He won’t look unless he’s planning something.”

“Let’s he doesn't,” Tails sighed, picking the mechanical hand from the vice and walking it over to Metal’s body. “I’m gonna keep trying to access the memory. It’ll take a while. Oh, and I removed all his weapons for now- just in case.” He fastened Metal’s hand to his forearm, screwing it in place.

“You shouldn’t mess with him like that,” Amy frowned.

“Don’t start- it’s for our own good. Especially if you plan on keeping him around your place.”

“I guess…” Amy was avoiding having to think about it. She wanted to help Metal, but having a long-term house guest in her little home wasn’t exactly in her plans. She struggled to think of another solution. 

Tails finished his work. “Well, what do you think? Not too shabby for one hand, especially considering the number we did on him,” he chuckled.

“Yeah, we really hit him hard, huh? He looks great, though.” Tails had removed the jacket Metal was wearing in order to work on his whole body. The jagged edges around where his left arm had torn off were now smooth and polished. His foot was reattached properly at the ankle. There remained scratches in his paint at the head and other areas he’d sustained damage, but all of his missing pieces were reattached neatly.

“You don’t know the half of it! I need to make more internal repairs. And what was with all the duct tape?”

Amy blushed. “I thought it would help,” she mumbled.

“Well, taking it off was a nightmare. Just leave the repairs to me, okay?”

Amy rolled her eyes. “Fine.” 

“Anyway, before I wake him, I think we should agree on something…” Tails rubbed his arm awkwardly.

“What is it?”

“Are you gonna tell him anything about his past? Do you think it’s a good idea?”

Amy peered down at Metal’s body. It didn’t feel right to keep things from him, but if they told him too much he might decide to look for his master. She didn’t want to lose the opportunity, but felt conflicted about hiding the truth. “I’m not gonna tell him, but I can’t lie if he asks,” she decided.

Tails nodded. “Fair, enough, I guess.” He knew he wouldn’t be able to convince her otherwise. “Let’s get it going then.” 

Tails fetched the remote from his desk and stood by Amy. He pressed three buttons in sequence with his thumb. A loud mechanical buzzing filled the otherwise quiet lab before dying down to a whisper. After a few seconds, Metal Sonic’s eyes illuminated. He peered around, spotting Tails first, then shifting his gaze to Amy. His eyes lingered on her.

“Hey, Metal. How do you feel?” Her warm smile and kind eyes shone. Metal was pleasantly surprised to see her looking joyful.

“Can you get up?” he heard Tails ask. Metal Sonic sat up, shifting his legs over the side of the bench with his back to them. Tails circled around to face him, pulling a stand toward him with an attached clipboard. “Great! Try that arm out.” Metal looked to his left. His arm appeared just the same as his right one- no barbed edges or exposed circuitry. He rotated his shoulder backwards, meeting no resistance. Tails took notes, instructing Metal Sonic to bend his arm and each of his fingers, then to rotate his ankle and point his foot. He stood on it without issue and had no problem balancing himself. Everything was operating correctly.

Tails pointed to Metal’s left arm with his pen. “Can you extend it?”

Metal tried to lengthen the telescoping wire, but struggled. After a few seconds, the arm jutted out and fell to the floor limply. He heard Amy’s soft gasp from behind him before she scuttered around front and stood next to Tails.

“Hmm. Thought that might happen. Sorry, I don’t have enough experience with that tech. You’ll have to give me more time.” He scribbled more on his notepad before returning to his computer

Metal was able to reel his arm back into place slowly. He watched it snake on the ground before it reached all the way back into its socket. At that moment, he felt a hand on his and turned upward to meet Amy’s gaze. “I’m sorry that didn’t work, but I’m happy you’re in one piece.” Metal glanced down at his hand. She felt warm. He then looked back to her and did the best impression of a “thank you” that could be sung with mechanical chimes.

“You’re welcome.” They were each surprised to hear her say that. Could she understand him? Amy excitedly laced her fingers with his, giggling at the thought. 

Tails cleared his throat from his desk. “I don’t know what _you’re_ saying thank you for when I fixed him _single handedly_ ,” Tails teased.

Amy let go of Metal abruptly, crossing her arms. “I could've helped if you’d let me!”

Tails snickered at this before Amy’s snarl intensified and he found it best to change the subject . “Well if you two are done, I still have to talk to Metal about something. C’mere.”

Amy sauntered behind the multitude of screens with Metal on her heels. What appeared to be x-rays lined the monitors. “This is Metal’s core,” Tails explained. “There’s a huge crack in the armature here. It’ll need welding.”

Amy raised a hand over her mouth at the realization. Her eyebrows curled in guilt. She knew that the damage was from their battle two days earlier; and she had helped Sonic deal the finishing blow. The beam that ran up and down Metal’s head and torso like a spine was cracked in two places. 

“I don’t think I can do it with this cast, so you’ll have to wait a few weeks. II’ll let you know when I’m ready. Oh, and avoid water for now- some snow must have seeped into your system from the cracks and damaged a few things.” Tails explained it all very indifferently. “You’ll be pretty waterproof once I fix it.”

Tails spoke a bit more about the repairs he’d made and what still needed to be done. With his memory, with his body, how he’d refueled the robot and other upkeep. Amy found herself panicking as she listened to the extensive list of things that needed to be done, knowing much of it was on her conscience. Metal noticed her panic, looking from her back to the black and white screen. 

She had to take a deep breath to avoid losing her composure. “Thank you, Tails. I think we should head home.”

Tails let out a yawn and looked at the time. It was close to midnight. He’d spent the day focused on everything but himself, and realized suddenly how hungry and tired he was. “Alright. The jacket’s by the lab door.”

“Hey, make sure you get some rest.” Amy pleaded. Tails had a habit of overworking himself.

He stretched out his arms. “I will.”

Amy went in for a side hug that Tails returned. “I mean it, go to sleep this time,” she smiled.

“Alright, don’t worry,” he chuckled. 

Amy and metal saw themselves out, picking his jacket up from a coat hook by the door. Metal was able to slip it on himself. He thought it felt weird to put on clothes, but was pleased he could do it himself. The pair strode out the front door, Amy bracing herself before crossing the threshold. The opening snapped closed behind them and they took off down the hill. The night was cold but clear. Amy shoved her hands deep into her pockets for warmth. “Let’s take the long way,” she suggested. Metal emulated her by slipping his own hands into the pockets of his thin jacket and nodded. The two strode the short way home quietly, under a dark sky dotted with lustrous stars.


	6. Chapter 6

“Okay, now add the eggs and vanilla,” Amy instructed. She was sitting at her kitchen counter watching her guests attempt to make chocolate chip cookies. Cream insisted that Amy just read out the ingredients and relax.

Cream reached for the amber bottle of vanilla extract. “How much is it again?”

“Two teaspoons.”

“Yes, captain!” Cream saluted Amy, cracking two eggs into the mixing bowl and splashing a little too much vanilla over them. “Oops…”

Amy chuckled, “It’s okay, just mix it.”

“You heard the lady. Let’s mix!” Cream pointed at Metal Sonic, who was reluctantly standing to the side gripping an electric hand mixer. He emitted a low chime and made a salute- this was also at the young girl’s behest.

Amy couldn’t keep herself from cackling at the sight of a sweet child ordering around a tall, formidable machine. It was the last sight she expected to see in her kitchen. Metal shot daggers at her as he mixed but it didn’t deter her laughter.

It was always easy for Amy to become comfortable with people, and having someone stay at her place for a week straight didn’t give her a choice anyway. She and Metal spent the last few days idling around, doing whatever Amy normally did on her time off- watching movies, sewing her spring garden, painting (or at least watching Metal attempt to delicately hold a brush). Not knowing how long her plan would take to pan out, Amy pushed the thought of explaining it to Sonic far back into her mind. He’d left town the day she and Metal visited Tails and was planning to be away for a couple more days, but Amy still hadn’t found the words to put together a convincing argument. They would have to cross that bridge when they got there.

Metal thought after his initial repairs that he should address his memory loss with Amy. He didn’t have any choice but to wait for the possibility that Tails could restore it, but he had known Amy in the past and wanted to understand how. Then he found himself enjoying his time with her. Another unfamiliar feeling. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to simply wait a while.

“Stop! It’s smooth,” Cream directed. The loud whizzing of the electric mixer died down and she turned back to Amy. “What’s next?”

Amy got out the last of her giggles and brought the recipe card to her eye level. “Sift in the dry ingredients.”

Cream dumped the pre-measured flour and baking powder into the sifter and carefully shook the airy powder into the rest of the mix. Amy was about to open her mouth to read the next step but was cut off by Cream shouting “Mix it!”

“No wait-” Amy pleaded too late.

Metal had turned the mixer up on high, sending most of the flour flying up out of the bowl. It caked all their faces and most of the counter before he realized his mistake and hastily pulled the mixer out. Then he frantically waved a hand in front of his face, blinded.

Amy rubbed the flour out of her eyes. “You’re supposed to go slowly,” she wheezed. The first thing she saw was Metal groping around the kitchen counter blindly. Cream burst into laughter a second later. “I don’t know what you think is so funny- You’re the one who had to clean this mess!” Amy glowered.

“W-what?” Cream’s hooting was cut short. “But Metal’s the one who did it!”

“You’re the one forcing him! He can’t even eat cookies, why are you making him hold the hand mixer?”

“Doesn’t mean we can’t do it together,” Cream scoffed.

The aluminum measuring spoons clattered to the ground. Metal had continued fumbling around for something to clean his face off with, knocking them over by accident. Amy clicked her tongue and made her way around the counter, pulling a kitchen towel out of a drawer. “Hold still before you break something!” she clamored, reaching up to taking hold of Metal’s face in order to wipe the thick layer of flour off his eyes. “Don’t you remember where the towels are?”

He chimed indignantly in response. He was never in the kitchen, why would he bother learning where she kept the rags? When the layer of dust had been cleared out of his vision, he felt something akin to embarrassment at suddenly being face-to-face with Amy. She must have felt similarly because she turned away from him in a huff. There was color in her cheeks.

Amy’s communicator could be heard ringing from her bedroom. She turned to answer it. “We’ll clean it together, just get a head start while I answer this.” She could hear Cream sigh as she began wiping the counter.

Amy clicked the button on the large tablet-like device. Tails could be seen on the other side, waving. He looked nervous. “Hey, Tails. What’s up? Feeling okay?”

“I’m alright,” he shrugged. “Sonic wants to say hi…”

A knot suddenly tied in Amy’s gut. “Sonic? He’s back already?”

“Hey Ames!” the view suddenly shifted to the blue hedgehog. He was all smiles as he waved to her. “Sure am! How’s it goin’?”

Amy forced a smile. “Great! Just hanging out! Where were you?”

“Did a little scouting. I think Egghead is up to something as usual. We should all get together and see what we can do about it.”

“Oh, really? I’m a little busy-”

“And Tails said you wanted to talk to me about something! Just letting you know I’ll be right over. See ya!” he winked and the screen went blank.

Amy began to panic. For a moment, she was frozen. The tablet rang once more and Tails was on screen again. “Sorry! I was calling to warn you. He’s about to leave-”

“What did you tell him?” Amy interrupted.

“Nothing! Just that you wanted to talk to him.” Tails turned his head. “Uh, he just left-”

Amy hung up before Tails could finish. Sonic would be there in seconds. She ran back into the kitchen, startling her guests. “Cream, you have to go now. Metal, can you walk her out the back?”

Cream looked up from her cleaning. “Huh? But we’re not done baking these yet-”

“Go. Now!” Amy pointed to the back door. “I’ll explain later.”

The panic in her voice was obvious. Metal took Cream by the hand gently, nudging her out of the kitchen just as Amy whipped her head around. A loud knock came from the door. She wasn’t expecting to have this confrontation today.

Amy started toward the door. “I’ll call you later, Cream.”

“O-Okay…” the girl was led out through the back door by Metal. He was on high alert. Amy’s sudden change in demeanor was alarming, to say the least. He waved to Cream as she threw her jacket on and scuttled off the beach, shooting him back a worried look as she left. Amy wasn’t in the house when Metal re-entered.

She had stepped out the front door the moment she opened it, greeting Sonic outside. Neither of them was wearing jackets. Sonic rarely did, but Amy immediately felt the air nipping at her. “Hey! I wasn’t expecting company today…” Amy leaned back against the door, making sure it was shut behind her.

Sonic was usually greeted with a begrudging hug, but immediately noticed his friend’s anxiety instead. “Hey, Ames. Everything okay? What did you wanna talk about?”

“Um…” she avoided his gaze. “Never mind that, let’s talk about what you found while scouting.”

He stood with his fists against his hips impatiently. “We can talk about that with the team tomorrow. What’s up? Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing,” she shrugged.

“Then how come we’re still standing out here?”

Amy was out of answers. She stalled by taking a deep breath, as if she was preparing to say something, but she didn’t know what that something would be.

Inside, Metal made his way across the house to listen at the front door. He heard a male voice that he instinctively recognized as threatening. He couldn’t explain why, but the voice outside sounded like his opponent. Was Amy in danger? The words weren’t menacing, but that voice…

Metal pulled the door open hastily. Amy struggled with the doorknob momentarily, but it was no use- the door opened inward and Metal was capable of pulling it with enough force to take it off its hinges. She stumbled backward, bumping into him from behind.

Metal’s eyes met Sonic’s. _Enemy_. Nothing about the blue hedgehog’s appearance immediately screamed “dangerous” or “threatening” but that was the only word that came to Metal’s mind. _Enemy_. He reflexively slipped an arm around Amy’s waist, pulling her back.

“Metal- wait!” she gasped. Sonic had seen him do this before. The context was different then, but neither of them knew that.

The shock that came across Sonic was enough to give him a rare, brief moment of pause. But the second Metal Sonic dragged Amy away, he knew he was in for a battle. “I don’t know how you got in here, but if you don’t let her go-”

“Sonic, stop!” Amy pleaded, still in the robot’s grasp.

_Sonic_. Metal heard her say his name when they’d met some days earlier. He recalled the search he’d made into his memory. The corrupt file. The one thing he could associate with _Sonic_ was _enemy_. His only instincts now were to fight and protect.

Metal leaped backward toward the sliding door with Amy in his grasp. He slammed it open and pulled her out the back; it was a miracle the glass didn’t shatter. She was pleading with him to stop. “Please! Let me explain!” But he wanted to get her far away from the approaching battle. Amy knew that if she struggled and managed to escape, there would be nothing stopping Sonic from attacking. Metal took her in his arms and accelerated toward the sky.

Amy didn’t know what to do. The cold wind stung her eyes and she held onto Metal tightly, dizzy from the sudden altitude. They flew up the hillside that formed a semi-circle behind the beach, landing on a grassy cliff that was wet from the melting frost. As Metal tried to put her down she folded her arms around him to prevent him from flying away. His engine whirred loudly and he reverberated a low note. He wasn’t going to let her prevent him from doing what he needed. He grabbed her arms and tried to force her off, sharp fingers digging into her delicate skin. Amy grimaced in pain but refused to let go. Realizing this, Metal softened his grip and tried his best to convey his confusion in his mechanical language. It stalled him long enough for Sonic to come running up the hillside and onto the same cliff.

“Get your hands off her!” Sonic looked for an opening to strike.

“Stop!” Amy held a hand out in front of her. “You need to listen to me, both of you-”

Metal slipped away from her, pushing her out of the way harshly. She lost her balance on the slippery grass and landed on her knees. He hadn’t meant to push her over, but Metal would have to find the time to apologize later. His long legs stepped around her coldly, approaching his opponent. They both stood offensively, each glaring at the other, unblinking. Metal was getting ready to take off into the air again to move the fight when they were interrupted.

Amy’s oversized mallet came down hard between them, ending their staring contest. The ground seemed to move beneath the three of them at the strike. Her scowl met Sonic first. “I said stop! Why don’t you ever listen?” she roared. Her eyes were twin volcanoes. “And you,” she whipped her head around to come face-to-face with Metal. “You idiot! You don’t even know why you’re fighting!” Amy’s shrieks echoed through the valley as she panted from the sudden exertion. Her throat felt as if she’d been breathing fire.

The other two seemed to realize at once that it was pointless to fight. Whatever instincts regularly guided them had failed in the wake of Amy’s intervention. Sonic knew better than to disregard Amy when she was fueled with this much rage. This wasn’t just her regular temper getting the better of her. The sudden charge frightened even Metal.

“Amy,” Sonic began.

“Shut up,” she shot back coldly. “You need to listen-”

“Amy, you’re bleeding.” he retorted, gesturing to her arm.

She looked at her right upper arm, where Metal had taken hold of her a few moments earlier. A small gash was beginning to send blood running down onto her forearm. She hurriedly covered it with her other hand and stood upright. “It’s just a scratch.” The chilly air, fierce anger, and shock of blood were enough to jerk Amy out of her adrenaline rush. She was shaking now.

Metal brought his rigid hands up to examine them. Blood capped the tips of the fingers on his left hand. Guilt came over him as he watched Amy’s white gloves turn pink.

Sonic took a step toward her. “Amy, just tell me what’s going on.”

“I will. Can we go home? I’m so cold.”

Sonic nodded, outstretching his arms to her. Metal put out his own hand but quickly stopped himself. He feared he would hurt her again. Amy turned back to him and nodded, as if to convince him that she was okay. Her pale face and shivering form were not so reassuring. “Meet us down there,” she told Metal as she took a seat in Sonic’s arms. Sonic knit his brow.

They sped down the cliffside and onto the beach. He slowed to a walk on the damp sand. “You can put me down,” Amy requested.

“Don’t be stubborn, we’re almost there. What’s gotten into you?”

Sonic carried her through the back door. Chilly air entered the house with them as it had been left open for the past several minutes. Amy was doing her best to ignore the mess in her kitchen and pulling a small first aid kit from her pantry when Metal lumbered in. He slid the door closed as slowly as he could control.

“Sit. Both of you.” It was like deja-vu. She wondered if this would end as well as it did with Cream.

The three sat at Amy’s dining table. Metal watched her silently clean the cut and running blood and stick a strip of bandage over top. It was more than a scratch but the wound wasn’t deep, Amy had stopped bleeding by the time she crumpled up the packaging from the bandage. Sonic didn’t take his eyes off the robot.

Amy held a hand out toward Metal. “Give me your hand,” she instructed plainly. He looked down toward his lap guiltily. “Hey, it’s okay.” She beckoned for his hand once again and he reluctantly lifted it over the table. Amy grabbed it and wiped the partially dried blood from his fingers with some cotton dipped in alcohol, all the while Sonic stared on tensely in confusion. “You’ll end up staining something if you don’t clean your hands…” she mumbled. Metal didn’t have a response but to watch. He wanted to be grateful that she wasn’t seriously hurt or angry, but the only thing he felt was remorse. There must have been a reason he was built this way, all sharp and armed. What was he still here for? He thought it was probably time he stopped loitering around her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're on Tumblr, please follow me @bimboamyrose - I post new chapters there first. Thanks for reading!


	7. Source Decay

Amy repacked the first aid kit carefully and deliberately. Even now, she was trying to think of what to say to Sonic. They each usually had plenty to talk about, but a rare silence filled the tense air as both sat speechlessly. Sonic and Metal sat across from one another, resuming their staring contest. But Sonic was no match for the robot’s unblinking gaze and his frustration hit a boiling point.

“Are you gonna tell me what’s going on?” Sonic snapped, turning to Amy. 

The metal latches on the first aid box clicked shut. “Yeah,” she breathed. “I guess it’s about time.” She lifted her wide eyes to Sonic slowly. She breathed deeply, a pleading look painted across her face as she explained. “Tails and I found Metal about a week ago. He was pretty damaged and doesn’t remember a whole lot. I thought he could use a place to stay while Tails made some repairs.” Her eyes were begging him to remain discreet. Either he didn’t get the message, or he didn’t care.

“What do you mean ‘found him’? You mean after we beat him up last week?” Amy’s sudden scowl didn’t seem to deter him either. “Why are you trying to repair him after he tried to kill-”

“I told you what happened,” Amy interjected, getting up from her seat. “Metal’s staying with me until Tails can fix him. I don’t know what’s so confusing about that.” She shrugged as she marched her way back to the pantry, tossing the kit back inside the cabinet.

Metal’s suspicions seemed to be correct. He and Sonic’s team were fighting just before Amy and Tails found him that day. The damage, no doubt, was due to the battle. The esoteric puzzle was unfolding before him. Metal remembered the cast on Tails’ arm- also injured- and he knew he must have been the one to hurt him. He turned his palms up on the table in front of him. The blood may as well have still been there.

Sonic wasn’t done. “You know exactly why it’s confusing! What aren’t you- Hey!”

The chair across from him scraped across the floor as Metal stood up abruptly. Sonic did the same, standing ready to strike. His robotic counterpart stared for a moment more before turning, taking steps toward the back door.

“Metal, wait!” Amy sprinted to get ahead of him and block his exit. “Don’t go, please!” A series of quick tones come from him as he waved his arm, motioning for her to get out of his way. She stood her ground, expertly reaching up to take his hand in both of hers. All at once, Metal saw her- the stains on her gloves, the mist in her eyes- and the bandage around her arm. When he felt her delicate fingers wrap tightly around his own it was as if he was no longer made of steel and wires but soft flesh and blood. His defenses fell. The extraordinarily gentle feeling that was nothing short of overwhelming enveloped him. He didn’t need his memory to know that nothing else could have made him feel that way. Could she really sway him so easily?

“Metal, I owe you an explanation. You can leave after that if you still really want to. Give me a chance,” she begged.

She misunderstood him. He did not feel angry or resentful toward her- not even toward Sonic. He wasn’t leaving out of spite. No, Metal’s impulse, however unusual, was to protect Amy. He didn’t understand why and truthfully did not see her as weak or inept, but he  _ did  _ understand the potential threat he posed by simply being around others. She wouldn’t be safe as long as he stayed there. The conflict came when he felt her inexplicable tenderness and realized he’d never get himself to leave as long as her influence tethered him there. Metal reached up slowly with his other hand, toward Amy’s face. Her rosy cheeks looked so warm.

He was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Sonic stood irate just behind him. “Don’t lay a finger on her or you’ll regret it.” Metal’s outstretched hand contorted into a fist as he turned back to meet Sonic’s eyes. The humming of his engine grew louder.

“Hey,” Amy reached to suppress Metal’s raised fist. “That’s enough of that.” She turned her attention to Sonic, brushing his grip from Metal’s shoulder. “Hands off. No one’s fighting today. I think it’s time for you to go.”

“I’m not leaving you here with this pile of scrap,” Sonic crossed his arms. His glare didn’t break from Metal’s.

“Leaving me where? In my house?” she scoffed. “I invited him to stay. You have no right to-”

“To what, Amy? Care about your safety?” Sonic finally turned to look directly at her. 

“Well you don’t have to worry about me ‘cause I’m not afraid of Metal.”

“You should be!” He pointed at her bandaged arm. “We both know that’s not the worst that could have happened.”

Amy’s blood was boiling now. After all those years, all the battles they’d endured together, how could he be so sure that she couldn’t look after herself? Did he think she was stupid or had no sense of self-preservation? “He didn’t mean it!”

“Well, what if he had? What could he have done to you? He’s not gonna hold back if he remembers!”

Metal lowered his gaze until his eyes landed to where Sonic had pointed. That was his fear, too. If he could hurt Amy without intention, what was he capable of if he wanted to do real damage? He couldn’t imagine hating her after the kindness she’d shown him, but it seemed his memories could prove him wrong.

“You don’t have any faith in me, Sonic!” Amy exploded. “I’m not a kid anymore! I know what I’m doing.” Her eyes dampened as she tore into him. “ You always doubt me! But I know we can help Metal if we give him a chance- He’s staying here and that’s final, so get used to it!” She was yelling again, her throat straining.

Sonic’s brows raised, taken aback by her response. He shifted to a gentler tone. “Amy, I just-”

“Well, don’t!” she cut him off. “I don’t want to hear it! You must think I’m stupid if you don’t think I can handle things for myself. If you won’t help me, then at least don’t make it any harder!” Tears were filling her eyes now, threatening to overflow onto her red-hot cheeks.

Sonic didn’t know how to respond. He shifted his weight uncomfortably and softened his expression at the sight of her mounting frustration- he could never stand to see her cry. He sighed. “I do trust you, Ames…” his eyes shifted to Metal begrudgingly. Sonic wanted to add something but left it at that. 

“Great.” Amy was choking back a whimper. She turned away from both of them, back into the kitchen, and began wiping down the counter aggressively. “You can go, then. I have to finish cleaning up now.” She didn’t look up.

Sonic rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. He wasn’t one to doubt his friends, least of all Amy; But it didn’t stop him from worrying. Her passions ran high and she was thoughtful and compassionate to a fault, her kindness often landing her in trouble. He resented that his care for her came off as distrustful. They weren’t the naive children they once were and his protective nature seemed to clash with that idea. But even if she could be incredibly stubborn, there was no shortage of care or intellect in her that could reasonably give Sonic pause in trusting her judgment. There was, however, Metal Sonic to contend with.  _ That  _ was the wild card he didn’t trust. Sonic shifted his attention to him. Metal Sonic had hardly moved except to turn to Amy. He watched her, no longer engaging in a battle of glares with Sonic. His expressionless eyes were impossible to read and Sonic wondered if the robot could feel anything, least of all guilt. Still, Sonic couldn’t deny that there was something different about his steely counterpart that day. 

Finally, he addressed Amy begrudgingly. “Call me if there’s trouble.” He saw Amy nod but she still didn’t look up. He took one last look at Metal, who shot back a glare before Sonic made his way out the front door. “I’ll see ya, Ames.” He hesitated before making his way out. “Be careful.”

The door closed behind Sonic. Amy couldn’t contain her emotions anymore. Tears made their way onto the counter that she wiped away immediately. It wasn’t quick enough to keep Metal from noticing. She rubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand, suppressing a sob. Then she felt something cold and firm around her wrist. Metal had taken hold of it lightly- he peered into her as she finally turned up to look at him. “I guess I owe you an explanation,” she sniffled. But he wasn’t thinking about that. He shifted his focus to her hand and Amy seemed to finally understand the sorry state she was in. The blood had soaked into her white gloves, drying into a muddy stain. The sleeveless dress she wore was dusty and damp. Her focus had been so divided as she was caring for her cut. She had done it mechanically, without thinking; finding the words to persuade Sonic had taken her full attention instead. Now, she thought of herself for the first time since the encounter, realizing how pitiful she must look.

Amy’s eyes opened like faucets. She tossed away the rag she’d been cleaning the kitchen with and brought her blood-stained hand up to her mouth to muffle her sobs in its palm. Metal was frozen. The sight of Amy weeping was deeply discomforting and it felt like there was a role he should be playing, but he didn’t fully understand what it was. Slowly, he raised an unassertive arm around the front of her, just meeting her right shoulder above the banged wound with his hand. The small nudge was invitation enough. Amy took hold of his shoulder and pulled herself onto him, nestling her face in his chest. If Metal had a heart she would have felt it hammering against her cheek.

Emotions can be quite overwhelming, he learned. He felt relieved that Amy didn’t recoil at his touch. Sympathy for her sadness. Most surprisingly, he felt exhilarated from their embrace. It all happened in a second. The feelings overcame Metal as he reached behind Amy, gently pressing a cold arm around her. His other hand was still gripping her wrist, so he let his fingers crawl up to meet hers. He cradled her delicate hand in his and pressed it against his other shoulder. From her tears to her back, Amy was warm and soft and trembling- a stark contrast to Metal’s still and steely body. A deep comfort built within him as he held her for a while. Sobs eventually turned to sniffles but Amy didn’t immediately let go after her shaky breaths slowed to their regular rhythm.

Wiping the last of the tears from her eyes, Amy took an unsteady breath. “I’m sorry. I guess I got pretty frustrated there.” Slowly, she pushed away from Metal and slipped out of his grasp, too embarrassed to look him in the eye. “I didn’t mean to be so forward.” Her voice cracked. “I should really change,” Amy blurted out, making her way to her bedroom at the quickest pace she could muster without literally running out of the room. She closed the door hard behind her. Her heartbeat mounted again and blood rushed to her face. It was bad enough to lose her cool like that in front of someone, but to hug Metal so presumptuously?  _ I bet I made him so uncomfortable, _ she lamented silently, not knowing how wrong she was.

A bit confused by her sudden and unexpected exit, Metal simply stood wondering if Amy’s mercurial nature would ever cease to surprise him. Still, her ability to express herself earnestly remained as admirable as it was fascinating. After thinking about it for some time, Metal turned his attention to the disarray before him.

Meanwhile, Amy had forced herself into a cold shower to cool off. Rather than the hamper, her gloves went straight to the garbage, trashed beyond any reasonable repair. Having taken her time, she wondered if he’d still be there when she returned.

Amy emerged in a cozy red sweater that obscured her injury, figuring neither of them would want to be reminded of it. She found Metal sitting at the dining table, staring out the glass door and into the skyline as the sun prepared to set. She’d found him that way a couple of times in the past few days, seemingly getting some enjoyment out of watching the brilliant colors mingle overhead.

Then, suddenly remembering the mess in the kitchen, she shuffled past him around the counter only to find it spotless. “Did you clean up?” she called to Metal. She saw him nod from across the room but he didn’t take his eyes off the scenery. “You shouldn’t have- thanks.” 

Amy made her way back around sheepishly. She took a seat just next Metal, joining him in watching the colorful sky. After a few minutes, Amy sighed. “Isn’t it pretty? You should see how it looks from up on the mountains. You can see the whole horizon and everything.” It took him a moment, but Metal looked back toward her this time before nodding. Amy felt her stomach knitting nervously. “But first, I think I should tell you about how we met.” 

As the pinkish-orange glow faded and the sky grew dim, Amy made her way to the sliding door, stopping to grab a blanket and flipping on the outdoor light as she went. “Let’s get comfortable,” she beckoned, wrapping the blanket around her. They both sat on lounge chairs under the eroding sunlight for another few minutes as Amy mustered the courage to speak. She was afraid he would leave abruptly to find his master once he found out the truth about his origins. “I haven’t been honest with you,” she finally admitted. “Can you promise you won’t leave before I tell you everything, though?”

Metal thought he wanted nothing more than to remember who he was. Now, he wasn't so sure he wished to find out- though he knew he had to. He gave her a nod. “Okay,” she breathed, drawing her knees up to her chest. “I’ll tell you what I know.” Metal copied her posture, crossing lanky arms over knees. He stared back expectantly. 

“I do know who Eggman is. He built you to fight us- well, Sonic specifically.” She met his gaze as confidently as she could. “But I think you’re capable of so much more than that, Metal.” Even as the stars emerged from hiding, they were no match for the way Amy’s smile illuminated the darkening night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was reading up on the song “Source Decay” by The Mountain Goats as it gave me some inspiration for this chapter. It has an interesting narrative. This is what the lyricist had to say about the lyrics:
> 
> “The backstory blurs and won’t cohere, the evidence mounts and is available but it just won’t gel into a satisfying narrative… you sometimes really deeply and desperately need to get a clean narrative line through some story in your life… the song is about how those outlines are like blurry shapes in fading light that you eventually have to just accept as they are.”
> 
> ANYWAY not to get corny with y’all but just wanted to share my thoughts. I scribble so much dumb bullshit down as I’m writing and thought this one was actually worth sharing lol. TY again to everyone who has been reading!!


	8. Destined

Somewhere in a childhood bedroom in a little house on a coast, a young girl kneeled on her rug far past her bedtime. Intentions set on finding true love, she knocked and shuffled her tarot cards across the rug like dominos then fanned them out in front of her. The girl had received the deck some days earlier- an early birthday gift from her cousin, who was her only caregiver. Superstitious about having to receive her first deck as a gift, she had studied the cards for months before getting a set of her own. Now, on the eve of her eighth birthday, a young Amy Rose was divining her future. 

A recurring dream about falling in love with a mysterious figure had vexed her thoughts for weeks but was waved off as an overactive imagination by whoever she told. The dream’s setting was curious- a tropical landscape surrounded by construction and cold machinery. In the physical world, a small heavenly body orbited close to her world for a few weeks out of the year. This time, Little Planet appeared like a ghost out of its foggy valley. The usually lush globe was now a bleak gray sphere tethered by a massive chain to the ground below, unable to return to its home in the sky. Amy’s dreams were nothing short of a premonition. Few were willing to investigate the looming satellite, but word had spread of a hero who’d caught sight of the planetoid in its deplorable state and ventured to liberate it. That was who she’d be destined to meet- she was sure of it.

Amy picked her hand and stacked the deck. A simple 5-card spread in a cross pattern offered to guide her in manifesting her cryptic love. She placed the first card in the center, then one each first on the right of it, then to the left. She repeated this above then below her first card and prepared to ask her questions. 

Fortune-telling guidebooks often recommended the querent first be introspective when it came to relationship matters. She thought for a moment. She was still new to fortune-telling and always found the first query to be the most challenging. Her vulnerability and uncertainty were apparent, and that was perhaps the first thing she would have to overcome. “Am I ready to find love?” she asked aloud. A nervous flip of the card revealed an upright Ace of Wands- her first time drawing it. A card to represent action and new beginnings. An encouraging start! She giggled a bit as her heart raced with excitement. 

“Okay, second card,” she breathed. “What will they be like?” The turn revealed a most unusual reversed Hierophant. Her brow curled as she tried to interpret what it meant. The religious figure depicted on the card stared back at her sternly. The Hierophant represented rigidity, conformity, tradition. She took the reverse of that to represent someone defiant in nature, who seeks freedom and independence. A little sigh came out of her when the thought of falling in love with a cute rebel flashed across her mind.  _ That sounds exciting, _ she mused.

Clearing her throat, the girl placed a hand upon the third card in her spread. “How will our first meeting go?” The ever ominous Tower caused her to gasp. Change. Danger. Chaos. She paged through her favorite tarot book frantically, trying to find a more positive association for the sign, when her eyes landed on the word “unexpected.”  _ That’s not so bad, _ she reasoned. She supposed it wasn’t unreasonable to expect some danger- there was obviously something threatening Little Planet. And she was most likely looking for someone heroic, after all. 

Shaking off the negative thoughts, she persisted. Her fingers rested delicately on card number four as she made her query and hoped for the best. “What will our relationship be like?” she asked, nervously flipping it over. The Moon.  _ Everything is not as it seems, _ she recalled learning about it. More uncertainty. Rather than think of her would-be love as potentially deceptive or dishonest, she believed The Moon foreshadowed surprises in the relationship. Ever the romantic, the mystery lit a fire in her heart. She chose to expect these surprises would be pleasant, but perhaps that simply wishful thinking. 

Amy focused her energy on the last card, closing her eyes and breathing in deeply as she held her palm over the top of it. There was much precariousness to overcome, and she wanted it to be worth her while. What would chasing this premonition ultimately bring her? Would it bring her happiness in the end? She cleared her throat. “Will it be worth it?” she asked timidly. The card revealed an injured man clutching a staff with many more behind him. The Nine of Wands- a bittersweet symbol. It represented struggles and difficult times ahead, but also perseverance and reward. In terms of a yes or no answer, it was unclear; she would have to decide for herself.

Now came the time to put together the symbolic puzzle and tell a story. Her own story. Reading one’s own fortune is tricky in a way- you tend to tell yourself what you want to hear. She closed her eyes and envisioned what the future could hold for her; tried to imagine the challenges she could face and whether she could overcome them. Surely with a heroic figure by her side, they would persevere. She smiled silently at the romantic thought- two lovers against the world. A rebellious spirit. Pleasant surprises. 

A sense of encouragement overcame her when she next looked at her spread. The Wands stood out to her now. The Ace shouting that she was ready, the Nine offering great rewards if she persevered. Her heart lit with nervous excitement as she shot up from the floor and ran to her dresser mirror. “Perseverance leads to success. You’re ready!” she affirmed. The girl’s beaming smile reflected back at her. She couldn’t sleep a wink for the rest of the night.

\-----

The journey up to Little Planet was already proving to be arduous. No way Amy was going to be able to climb the massive chain tethering the worlds together. She had hiked up the mountainside hoping to find an alternate route. As she approached the side facing the valley, Amy noticed huge, metallic containers being swarmed by several strange robotic creatures down below. Then, one of the containers floated up, propelled by some kind of floating platform. She gasped as she took cover behind a boulder, watching the container fly straight into Little Planet’s atmosphere. It moved somewhat slowly and didn’t seem to be manned. That was her ticket up there.

Once it had hovered past, she looked back toward the operation in the valley. There were only two more of those containers. Amy swallowed hard as the danger became apparent. _I can do this._ _Perseverance leads to success._ The next box was being lifted off the ground by four mechanical bees. It was placed on another platform that then began its ascent. The last one seemed to take its time climbing up, but to Amy, this one totally zoomed past. Her body refused to cooperate. She couldn’t manage to force herself to jump off the cliffside. What if she missed it? What if she overshot it? Her opportunity to jump on flew past.

_ No! I have to do this. I can do this… _

Amy peeked her head over the side of the mountain once again. One container left. If she didn’t hitch a ride now, she would never get up there. She watched as the cargo was loaded, counting the seconds until it floated past her.  _ Perseverance leads to success. Perseverance leads to success. Perseverance- _

It was probably less than a second, but the leap Amy took onto the precariously floating platform lasted an eternity. Her heart could have jumped out of her chest- and it probably would have if she hadn’t landed squarely in the middle of the storage container. It wasn't the smoothest landing, but Amy was surprised to find that she felt… perfectly fine. She wasn’t hurt. She wasn’t scared. Seconds earlier, the girl was sure that if a fall didn’t kill her, a heart attack surely would. But now, a sense of relief washed over her.  _ I’m actually doing this! _

The platform neared the globe as a densely humid fog filled the air. Clouds obscured her vision for a few seconds before it came into full view. Construction cranes clashed with the otherwise natural landscape. The platform stopped ascending and shifted to one side suddenly, Amy slipping slightly toward the edge, doing her best to cling to the smooth metal surface. She was being carried over a valley now. Catching sight of the drop below her caused her to shutter. Then suddenly, the ground grew nearer and nearer, until the platform was hovering mere inches off a canyon wall. She could see another gaping valley ahead as the platform approached the horizon. If there was ever a time to hop off, this was it.

She quickly covered her head and rolled onto the rocky ground, scraping her legs and arms. Suppressing a wimper, Amy slowly got up. It was just a few scratches.  _ But it stings... _ Tears welled in her eyes for a moment until she shook her head defiantly.  _ Perseverance leads to success. Get over it!  _ she told herself. So she persisted.

Amy walked along the wide canyon wall until she reached a hilly region lavish with palm trees and small waterfalls. Two hikes and hardly a wink of sleep later, she was exhausted. She didn’t really have the slightest idea of where she should be looking for this mystery person. Becoming frustrated, Amy planted herself under a small grove of tropical fauna. The sun blazed overhead, just halfway across the sky. Just as she was beginning to ask herself what she was doing there, Amy heard a distinct  _ whoosh _ at the base of the hill. 

Whatever made the noise was gone by the time she looked down over the hillside. Then, another loud  _ whoosh _ in the opposite direction. If she’d blinked she would have surely missed it. Nothing but the afterimage of a blue blur remained- and Amy recognized it immediately. She gasped excitedly at the realization.  _ That was Sonic the Hedgehog! _

She’d heard the name trending around town for months. The hero that saved South Island from the evil Dr. Robotnik. The fastest thing alive.  _ And my total dream man!, _ she added giddily. She couldn’t believe it.  _ He  _ was the hero she was destined to meet! Her fortune was beginning to improve, no doubt about it. Now, she only had to find a way to talk to him. 

He zoomed past again, making another  _ whoosh _ behind her. Amy quickly turned to see the blur speeding left and right up the hill, then disappear- presumably into a cave or tunnel. There was a long, flat expanse of land ahead. The erratic movements gave her a chance to catch up with him ahead. A sudden bolt of energy rushed through her as she raced to the end of the hill bank. 

The land formed into a bridge ahead of her and Amy was sure that Sonic would pass through soon enough. What she didn’t expect was for a massive, bipedal mech to come down just in front of her, blocking her path. The immense machine towered over her as she stopped dead in her tracks, tripping her to the ground.

“Oh, what do we have here?” A sinister male voice came from the top of the machine. Amy looked up to find it was piloted by a bald, rotund man with a wooly mustache. She recognized him from the stories she’d heard- Dr. Robotnik. “Another one of Sonic’s little friends? Oh, but you don’t look so tough,” he cackled. A mammoth mechanical leg hovered over her. She covered her eyes and screeched in horror.

Her shocked screams must have traveled far, as Amy didn’t have to wait another second before Sonic came dashing to her rescue. In an instant, she’d been scooped off the ground and carried to safety just as the machine’s foot connected with the ground. She hesitantly peeked between her fingers. Sonic had lowered her to the ground gently before zooming back down the land bridge toward the terrible contraption. She watched in awe as her hero leaped and dashed, taking down the machine in a matter of seconds. Somehow, the man escaped as part of the mech broke off into a floating orb and flew away. Amy heard him cursing back at Sonic but couldn’t catch what he’d said. 

She sighed and swooned as she realized how her fortunes were coming true. This must have been that turbulent meeting she was expecting. It wouldn’t be long before the rest of the cards fell into place. “Hello!” she waved him over cheerfully. “I’m Amy Rose! Thank you for saving me!”

Sonic dusted himself off as he approached her. “Hey, no problem. I’m-”

“Sonic the Hedgehog!” she interrupted. “I’ve heard all about you!”

“Have you?” he grinned. “Guess I’m getting pretty famous.”

“Yeah,” she giggled nervously.

“So, why exactly were you challenging that thing?”

“Oh! I wasn’t- I mean- I’m a fortune-teller- well, kind of, I’m just starting out- but I’ve been having all these dreams about meeting a hero on another world, and then, you know, all of this happened to Little Planet, and I heard someone was rescuing it and- well, to be honest, I was kind of hoping it would be you since I’ve heard all these stories- so, I did a tarot reading last night and as it turns out, we were destined to meet today! Well, I think it was supposed to be today- it’s my birthday. Isn’t that wonderful?” Her frantic explanation left her breathless.

“That’s, um… a lot. Happy birthday?”

Amy’s eyes lit up. “Yes it is, thank you!”

“Well, we’ve met. Glad I could help ya fulfill that fortune, but I gotta get going-”

“I’ll come with you! We’re destined to go on an adventure together!” 

_ No way that’s happening.  _ Sonic backed up from her casually. “Amy, was it? You said you were new at fortune-telling, right?”

“Oh! Um, yes, sort of.”

He turned and started toward the bridge of land connecting to the other side of the valley. “So how can you be sure?”

“Huh?” she sprinted ahead to follow close behind him.

“Those cards - you’re sure you read them right?”

Amy picked up her pace to keep up. “Oh! Well, there are lots of ways to interpret the cards. It’s more about feeling. I can show them to you if you’d like,” she smiled.

The landscape changed as they crossed to the other side. In contrast with the tropical forest, this place was more developed, sporting tall metallic structures. Neon lights flashed ahead and the climate grew comfortably cooler. It was just the planet’s curious atmosphere, but the clouds above blushed a romantic pink hue as if it were suddenly dusk- or if Amy were wearing rose-colored glasses.

Sonic stopped, holding up a hand “No thanks. Anyway, tagging along is too dangerous. Eggman isn’t messing around. I think you should go home.” 

“Oh! My cards predicted there would be disaster!” she giggled gleefully, not fully aware of the possibility that she could be seriously hurt or worse.

Sonic‘s expression was somewhere between worried and annoyed. “You chose to come even though you knew it would lead to disaster?”  _ This girl’s wacky, _ he thought.

She nodded bashfully. “Mhm. But I know that if we persevere through the danger, we’ll have a happy ending.”

“Look, I can’t exactly babysit right now.” Sonic didn’t have time to fully process the girl’s sudden appearance and unlikely explanation. He leaped upward toward a colorful platform with the intent to continue forward without her. “Maybe we can figure this out later. You need to go-”

Without warning, something struck Sonic’s platform, tearing it apart. He managed to hop off just in time but was too late to save Amy from the attack. In a flash, she was hoisted off the ground, screaming for her life. She was held under arm by a robotic blue hedgehog carbon-copied from Sonic’s image. Its glowing red eyes stared through Sonic’s as it floated nearby for a few seconds, taunting him as she shrieked. Amy could hear Sonic calling out her name as she was hurdled into the sky by the terrifying machine. She didn’t dare try to escape with the threat of an endless fall beneath them. So she held on as best she could, eyes and skin stinging from the high altitude’s bitter atmosphere.

\-----

Cold floor. Cold walls. Cold eyes. Amy sat in a tiny steel cell somewhere in what could only be described as an evil lair. Machines buzzed and electricity crackled all around. The adrenaline from the flight was beginning to wear off and dreadful exhaustion was setting in. Her captor stood as a sentinel nearby, glaring at her menacingly. Amy forced herself to turn away from his eerie gaze, but she could feel his steely eyes on her like snow piling on her back. She did her best to keep from shivering.

“Oh, good! You’ve brought her back alive.” A harsh cackling could be heard as Eggman passed through the area. “Thank you for letting us use you as bait. Don't worry- you’ll be free to join my empire as soon as Metal here crushes Sonic,” he grinned.

Amy whipped her head around. “As if Sonic would lose to some copycat,” she scoffed. Being taken hostage was one thing, but she wasn't about to let anyone disparage her destined hero.

He laughed heartily in return. “Plucky, aren’t we? Perhaps I’ll keep you around. Metal Sonic could use a plaything.” Amy gasped at this, recoiling what that could mean. Robotnik smiled and sauntered casually over to the robot, who was still staring daggers at the girl. “Oh, forgive his rudeness. He was just activated today. Doesn’t know much in the way of manners yet,” he chuckled ironically. “Metal, there’s no need to stare. You’re making our guest uncomfortable.”

Metal Sonic shifted his focus to his master. Earlier, The Doctor had said, “don’t take your eyes off of her!” He was following orders. Perhaps this was too literal.

“Well, I have to complete some preparations before our little blue friend arrives. No roughhousing before we kill him, now! Wouldn’t want her dead before she’s fulfilled her purpose.” He continued laughing harshly as he disappeared down a hall. 

Amy felt somewhat relieved to have Metal Sonic’s robotic gaze off her, but there wasn’t much else she could be thankful for at that moment. She tried not to think about the situation she had gotten herself into.  _ Perseverance leads to success. Just a little longer. _ But as she shivered pathetically in her frigid prison, she felt not only disparaged but humiliated. How could she have let herself be kidnapped? She didn’t even try to fight it- she knew she couldn’t win.  _ What if I’m too weak? _ Tears forced their way out of her eyes.  _ Maybe the cards were warning me not to come… _

Metal Sonic continued watching over the girl, albeit less intensely. He had logged her image, noting the words  _ weak _ and  _ loud _ alongside. Now, he was more focused on calculating a route to victory against his opponent. But the change in her sparked his interest. He had never seen someone cry- he hadn’t seen much of anything yet, in fact. He only knew what he was programmed with- serve The Doctor, defeat Sonic, observe and learn. He decided to watch her a bit more closely and approached the small cell. 

Tears had escalated to a gentle sobbing by the time Metal Sonic was near. For however cold it was in that space, Amy still felt a chill before she realized how close the machine had come. She hugged herself tightly, once again forcing herself to look away. This thing didn’t need to see her looking so pitiful; she didn’t want to give it the satisfaction. Then she heard an inquisitive chime come from Metal Sonic. At least, she thought it was inquisitive. It sounded almost childlike in its curiosity- was it curiosity? Amy turned slowly, locking her wet eyes with his fiery ones. “Wh-what do you want?” she stammered.

What  _ did  _ he want? There was something peculiar about the way his hostage acted. Or, to put it more precisely, the way he reacted to her. It was strange; he succeeded in following his objective. What was this other feeling? Was it pity? No- It was interesting to him, that was all. He repeated his mechanical chirp, hoping to learn more.

There was something in the way he looked at her and how he sounded. It wasn’t malicious. “Wait,” Amy sniffled, “Do you… feel bad?”

Metal Sonic was taken aback by her question. He was certainly not supposed to feel  _ bad. _ He sort of shrugged and shook his head, sneering at the idea. 

“Of course not.” Amy looked defeated, kneeling on the hard floor with slumped shoulders and ruddy cheeks. The hushed weeping didn’t stop.

No, he didn’t feel  _ bad. _ He couldn’t. As far as Metal Sonic was concerned, he accomplished a mission- that was indisputably correct. Positive even! Yet the consequence of his success was this miserable sight. He didn’t understand  _ what _ he was supposed to feel; or why he cared. But he wanted to. So, he knelt just on the other side of the cell bars, mimicking the girl, and tapped on the flooring to get her attention.

The metallic clacking startled Amy out of her pity party. Her expression quickly turned from sorrowful to indignant. “What now?” SHe noticed his posture. “Are you making fun of me?” 

Mocking her wasn’t his intent, but the girl’s response was amusing to Metal Sonic. So temperamental. He shook his head again.

Amy’s eyes softened. Her captor couldn’t seem to do the same, a permanent scowl affixed to its face. Still, mean mug and all, she couldn’t shake the feeling that it was… genuine? Robotnik mentioned that Metal Sonic was recently activated. He just seemed like other kids her age- curious, maybe a bit naive. It gave her an idea. 

She wiped her wet face on her hand and forearm, resolved to compose herself. Metal Sonic was staring again, but it wasn’t the uncomfortable leer from earlier. It wasn’t exactly pleasant, though. “Why do you stare so much?” she asked uncomfortably.

He turned his eyes away abruptly, still facing her. He wasn’t supposed to stare- but he  _ was _ supposed to watch her. Contradictory, but those were his orders. It didn’t make that much sense to him so he shrugged in response. 

“Humph. I don’t see why an evil robot should care about manners…”

Metal Sonic’s eyes shot back at her, his shoulders clenching. He resented being called  _ evil _ . He wasn’t anything- or wasn’t supposed to be, anyway. His only affiliation was with his creator. The humming of his motor intensified irately.

Amy could tell immediately that he was annoyed. “What, don’t like being called evil? Maybe don’t do evil stuff like kidnapping people, then! How would you have liked it?” 

Offended, Metal Sonic crossed his arms. The very idea that he would ever be kidnapped! That only happened to lesser beings. The girl had let herself be kidnapped, no attempt even made to fight back. Not that she had much of a choice in the matter, being so much weaker. His look shifted down as he thought, realizing that she had a point. She  _ didn’t _ have a choice in the kidnapping. Was it  _ evil  _ to take advantage of that? His shoulders slumped. Not that he cared, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it if it was...

The change in Metal Sonic’s body language was clear to Amy. “Starting to understand?” She scooted closer to him sheepishly. “You don’t have to be evil, you know. You can choose.” She watched as Metal Sonic’s glowy eyes slowly shifted back to her, somehow looking less frightening now. He saw her smile for the first time as her face softened. Fishing her tarot deck out of her pocket, she continued. “Would you like to try making a choice?”

Though he found it to be unusual given her situation, the smile was not at all unwelcomed. The small insinuation that he would ever disobey an order, however, was. He callowly believed he would never do such a thing, however evil those orders may be. Still, the implication- and her strange little deck- intrigued him and he nodded with interest.

Amy’s face brightened even more. “You were just activated today, right? So, that basically makes today your birthday! It’s mine, too,” she giggled earnestly. “My name’s Amy Rose. I bet it’s destiny that we met on our birthdays. It must mean today is a really important day for both of us. I should know, ‘cause I’m a fortune-teller.” 

She seemed exceedingly confident considering that nothing she said made a lick of sense. It was his first day being fully operational, yes, but Metal Sonic hardly considered that to be a  _ birthday _ . And now she was touting her fortune-telling and talking about  _ destiny  _ of all things? It was all too illogical- and his desire to understand made it all the more interesting to him. He logged her name in her file and nodded along.

“So, let’s do a birthday reading! Let’s try an easy spread with three cards. Here,” she tossed the cards all on the floor, mixing them up before spreading them out neatly before him. “Ask yourself what this year will be like for you. Then choose your cards and slide them back face down. One at a time, whichever ones stand out to you.”

Whichever ones stood out? They all looked the same. He couldn’t focus on any one card, shifting his sight all across the fanned out deck.

“Don’t overthink it!” Amy interjected. “Just choose whichever ones feel right, ‘kay?” She looked at him encouragingly. 

Whichever ones  _ feel _ right. Metal Sonic pondered on it for a moment. Thinking about his feelings was new- but then again, a lot of things would be new for now. Not that he was taking it seriously. After all, what could a bunch of paper tell him about his future? But looking again, there  _ were  _ a few cards that stood out somehow. He pushed the thought from his head and slid each of his three selections back to her.

“Great!” Amy pulled back the rest of the cards, arranging them in a neat stack. “Okay, let’s ask this first card what gift you’ll get this year. Think about that question and let me know when you’re ready to turn it.”

The girl sat eagerly in front of him, hand poised to flip the card around. He probably wouldn’t have ever thought about receiving a gift- let alone what it would be- if he hadn’t been asked to think about it now. Metal Sonic nodded once, keeping the curious question in mind.

Amy turned it excitedly- she wouldn’t volunteer the information, but this was her first time doing a reading for someone else. She was determined to make it impactful. “And it looks like you got the Ace of Cups! Wow, this is a really emotional card.” She thought for a moment, recalling what she’d read about the suit and each of its pieces. “Okay, well, Aces are all about newness, you know? This one especially represents new feelings and relationships. Oh! Maybe you’ll make a new friend. I wonder who that could be,” she giggled. “The thing about cups, though- well, I guess you have to be willing to drink from it. You have to accept the good things, and you can’t let negativity stand in your way. Does that make sense?”

He was surprised to find that it did make some sense. But surely it was a coincidence- it was too on the nose. The world was new to him, sure, but it could logically apply to anyone. He shrugged, rolling his eyes sideways. It didn’t mean anything.

A coy grin spread across Amy’s face. She could tell that he believed it, however uncomfortable it made him. “I’ll let you think about that one. Let’s ask the next card for guidance. Ask what you can do to accomplish your goals.”

Guidance hardly seemed necessary when Metal Sonic had his programming. Attaining his goals was instinct. He indulged, nodding again plainly. The card showed a somewhat macabre scene.

“Judgement. Oh, but it’s reversed for you. Hmm, I think it means you have no self-awareness,” she nodded bluntly. “But I guess that makes sense. You’re going to have to learn a lot about yourself soon and reflect on it. You might also get an opportunity that you shouldn’t pass up.”

She seemed to be looking at him expectantly. She was trying to manipulate him. It wouldn’t work, but it was pretty entertaining; respectable even. He wanted to see how the girl could spin the last card in her favor. Wondering how she manipulated him into choosing the right cards for her narrative, he nodded to continue.

Amy placed a hand on the last card. “This one’s important. The card will give you an idea of how your actions will affect your life. It pretty much represents you, so make sure to concentrate when you ask ‘who will I be this year?’” 

Not  _ what _ but  _ who. _ Who would he be? Metal Sonic hadn’t thought of himself as much more than a machine up until then. But there were feelings beyond thought in him- could he call them emotions? No, this wasn’t the time for an existential crisis. He would have just gotten up and returned to his post if the curiosity about the last card wasn’t so vexing. He nodded, wanting to finish the ordeal. The card’s face revealed an armored man rushing forward on a white steed. Its head pointed toward Metal Sonic. 

“The Knight of Swords. He’s ambitious, and he takes action.” Amy picked it up and held the face out at eye level. “But it’s reversed. Something’s holding him back from giving it his all. Usually, it means you’re distracted or you don’t have any real direction. Maybe your goals aren’t aligning with what you want.” She picked up the reversed Judgement, holding the two cards together. A melancholy sigh made its way out of her lips. “It might be because you haven’t had a chance to reflect on much yet. I bet it’s hard to just, I don’t know, wake up like you did? It’s like you know things, but you never had a chance to learn the lessons.” 

He stared at the cards silently, astonished by her interpretation. He wanted it to be complete nonsense, but everything she said managed to resonate. There was no doubt she manipulated the reading, but he had chosen the cards himself. They stood out as if glowing from the fanned deck just minutes earlier. It was all true- he had barely been activated and one mission later was already doubting himself, even asking himself if he was evil. He couldn’t deny the jarring nature of his existence. But what was next? Heed the advice of some colorfully decorated cardstock?

A gentle voice broke his train of thought. “You’re thinking about the reading. It’s okay, I know it can be a lot to process.” Amy moved closer, sticking her arm out from behind the bars. She was offering him the cards. “Holding them helps to understand, I think.” He took the three of them in both hands, examining the artwork. “Your next choice is whether or not you’ll listen to their guidance.”

He looked from her to the cards as he held them. Again, guidance should be the last thing a programmed machine should need- he should have been built with all the direction he needed. Yet, she took the opportunity to speak to him even after he’d wronged her.  _ Kind _ . He noted it in his file of Amy Rose. 

Then the realization that he’d been neglecting his duty took over him. This nonsense about destiny and kindness was getting in the way. Besides, it was all too confusing to think about this improbable future. Yes, he was focusing on the wrong thing- there was a mission to complete. Playtime was over. Metal Sonic dropped the cards absently, resolved to stand where he was stationed and await further orders. He didn’t get that far.

“Wait!” Amy reached out to him desperately, latching onto his wrist before he could leave. “I know it’s overwhelming, but just think about it. Please.” Her eyes pleaded with him for a moment before they were interrupted.

A shrill voice announced Robotnik’s return. “Metal! It’s showtime!” He paused to take in the scene that was unfolding before him. “What’s this? Our hostage giving you trouble?” Amy unhanded Metal Sonic in a hurry and scrambled to pick up her cards. He was still half-kneeling before her but quickly stood upright at his master’s appearance. Luckily, Robotnik was in too much of a hurry to fixate on the scene. “Forget it. Metal, grab her, and let’s get going.” The cell door swung open.

Amy shot up as Metal Sonic entered. Eyes locked, she begged him once more. “You don’t have to do this,” she whispered. “You can be more than this.” It was enough to give him pause. Could she be right? Could he choose not to obey orders? He must have hesitated for a moment too long because Robotnik quickly lost his patience.

“What are you waiting for? Bring her here this instant!”

Amy’s expression of terror was not one Metal Sonic would soon forget. Nothing about it made him want to deliver her to The Doctor; He didn’t  _ want _ to obey.  _ “You don’t have any real direction,”  _ her words echoed in his mind. Metal Sonic’s fists clenched at his side as he stood conflicted before her, his back to his master. 

“Rebelling already?” Robotnik grumbled. “Perhaps a little motivation.” He brandished a small remote and turned a dial. 

Metal Sonic seized suddenly. As if struck by lightning, sparks visibly bounced off his body before it went limp. Shocked and confused, Amy backed herself away. “What- what did you do?” she gasped. Before Robotkin could answer, Metal Sonic was upright again.

“Good to see the inhibitors working. Now grab her and get a move on!”

“No, stop!” No amount of protesting would save Amy now. Whatever he’d done to Metal Sonic appeared to erase any progress she’d made. She kicked and squirmed but was soon restrained by Metal Sonic, dragged off to whatever assembly point Robotnik had in mind for his scheme. At least this time she put up a fight.

\-----

Amy could hardly tell if she was indoors or out. The drop below the scaffolding she’d been placed on was immense, though the metallic clanking below could still be heard faintly. It was dark as if night time- but there was no way the sun had time to set between her kidnapping and now. A claw-like contraption held her just a few feet off the scaffolding uncomfortably. She groaned, turning to face the heavy metal door to one side of her. She was apparently waiting for Sonic or his imposter to race through it any minute (Robotnik had assured her it would be the latter). So now she was alone, helplessly waiting to be rescued.  _ Or not _ , she worried. 

She thought about the disappointment of her meeting with Metal Sonic and how quickly she’d been sabotaged. She really believed everything she’d told him- the significance of meeting on their birthdays, her predictions for his future- all of it.  _ I guess there was never a point if Robotnik could just zap him back into a zombie. I wonder if he’ll remember anything… _

There wasn’t any more time to think about it. Before Amy knew it, Sonic came racing down the pathway and through the door, skidding to a stop in front of her. The heavy door slammed shut and something crashed loudly on the other side of it. 

“Looks like I won,” Sonic grinned.

Amy’s face lit up immediately. “Sonic! You came for me!”

“Yep! All I had to do was beat that that Metal Sonic in a race. Piece of cake.” The metal claw swung open after he gave it a quick hit. 

Amy dusted herself off, turning her attention to the doorway that was now dented inward. “So, did he…”

“Crash? I guess so. Consider yourself lucky.”

_ I guess it was just a machine, after all, _ Amy reasoned. Sonic’s nonchalant response made it clear he wouldn’t be losing sleep over his victory. Besides, her fortunes were shifting. Manifestations nearing meant it wasn’t the time for distractions. She erased the thought from her mind and focused on what she’d come for. “Thank you for saving me! So, what now?”

Sonic’s self-assured grin grew wider. “We still have a planet to save. You coming?”

His words were a dream come true to the starry-eyed girl. She threw herself around him brazenly, tail wagging with glee. The affection made Sonic squirm but he remained polite, feeling guilty for allowing to be kidnapped earlier. “Of course!” she giggled. “I’ll follow you anywhere!”

\-----

“Sonic freed Little Planet after that and we didn’t see you for a while. We encountered each other a few times after that, but I think this story was long enough.” Amy lounged comfortably, chin resting in her hand. She breathed in the crisp night air and sighed nostalgically. “It was over nine years ago. Man, we were all so short back then. You and Sonic are so much taller than me now...” She looked down at her dazed guest. “You okay down there?”

Metal sat slouching on the ground in front of her. He was carefully recording every last detail she’d recounted when he matched the photograph he’d logged of Amy back then to her retelling. The tense circumstances of their meeting were uncomfortable to recall. She’d even insinuated he was evil- he remembered. The day came back to him. Metal sat up suddenly at the realization.

“What is it?” He stared at her directly, unsure of how to communicate his epiphany. She snickered awkwardly, bemused by the outburst. It wasn’t long ago she’d have found that glowy leer petrifying, but now it was just amusing.

Metal placed a finger over the scratch on his forehead, concentrating on her as if he could transmit his thoughts. Her eyes widened. “Oh! Did you remember something?” He answered by tapping on the ground just as he had back then. A kind smile appeared on Amy’s face as she leaned closer to him. “Yeah, that’s how we met! Do you remember anything else?” He didn’t, so leaned back until he was parallel with the ground at her feet. Amy giggled at his response. “Not yet, huh? But hey, if my stories ring a bell then I can tell you a few more!” She paused. It occurred to her that reliving the better part of a decade in a matter of days or hours could prove to be overwhelming. “I mean if you want. We should probably take it slow.”

It was strange enough that Amy had managed to jog his memory, but her apparent ability to understand what he wanted to communicate was becoming uncanny. Even during their first encounter, she told him exactly what he needed to hear- though he regrettably hadn’t done much to listen. Metal did want to hear more, but her thoughtfulness in pacing was a relief. It was all a lot to process. There was one more thing he needed to know, however. Metal folded his hands over his chest and rolled his head over to face her. 

“I guess you’re wondering why I saved you. Sorry- did that sound kinda narcissistic?” she chuckled. Amy stretched, sitting upright. “Oh, I might as well be honest.” She combed her hand through her quills sheepishly. “So, I thought, since you’re mechanical, we could just reprogram you or something- I don’t know. But the more we hang out…” she tried finding a tactful way to approach the next part. “Well, I guess I realized I should treat you with the same respect as anyone else. I think, without all the overbearing influence, you can decide for yourself what’s right. I mean, I hope I’m not too overbearing either! But, you know. Maybe I can be there for you, if that’s okay.” 

So, she was giving him a choice. He’d seen what Tails could do; they could have easily tried to brainwash him, erasing his past forever. But he placed his trust blindly in Amy and her friends and had been rewarded with nothing but care and kindness. Now, Metal had a chance at freedom. Appearing as if he hadn't had many opportunities to make decisions for himself, he silently worried his daunting past would get in the way. The independence felt unnatural, unfamiliar. A bit uncomfortable. But he was made for difficult tasks; Why should he shy away from this? He reached up to her, placing a hand gingerly over hers in thanks. She returned with a gentle squeeze. The embrace was chilly from the night air, but the gesture undoubtedly came from a place of warmth.

“So, do you want to stay for a while?” Amy’s welcoming smile radiated with immense charm. How could he say no?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Contains chapter spoilers)
> 
> I may have been inspired by the anniversary of Sonic CD last month. I thought it would be cute if Metal and Amy shared a "birthday," so here we are. Anyway, I did a lot of research on tarot and replayed some of Sonic CD to get the timeline right, and I even spoke with a good friend who's a fortune-teller for additional insight. I've always found tarot to be really interesting and enjoy having my fortune read, so I found the canon story of Amy using tarot to meet Sonic to be very sweet. Overall, this was really fun to write, so I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> The very talented @maggy-world drew two lovely pieces based on this chapter. Please check her out at maggy-world.tumblr.com  
> (sorry I can't figure out how to link things here ; ; )
> 
> Also, a reminder that I update more frequently on Tumblr @bimboamyrose, so feel free to follow the fic there as I'm more active. You can also message me there if you are interested.
> 
> Thanks babes~


	9. The Thing About Sunsets

Mid-morning that Sunday, Amy and Metal lounged crossed-legged on the couch. She ate cereal from her bowl absent-mindedly, more focused on the day ahead than her breakfast. Metal was enthralled with some cartoon violence on TV. Amy watched him idly, wondering how-or if- Metal would be introduced to the team. She didn’t want to force it, but leaving him out entirely seemed unwelcoming. As much as she’d enjoyed her week or so off, it was only a matter of time before they’d all have to spring back into action. Sonic was supposed to discuss something with everyone today, and she was just waiting for the call.

Noon was fast approaching as they watched TV, Amy only half paying attention. Annoyed, she decided to get up and make the call herself. They weren’t about to waste the day watching cartoons. Amy excused herself and made the call from her room.

On TV, piloted mechs battled one another in the vast expanse of space. Amy had flipped it on, figuring Metal would enjoy watching a pair of huge robots duke it out. That was entertaining enough, but Metal found himself more invested in the show’s drama. A romantic subplot followed two unwitting opposing pilots falling in love, only to confront one another in battle later. The climax found the two caught in the crosshairs until the soldier sacrificed himself for the rebel, turning against his own armed forces to protect her. It was almost ostentatious in its melodrama.

_Illogical_. Metal thought the soldier had plenty of opportunity to defend himself against his own team. Using his mech as a shield was played up for theatrics- his superior speed could have allowed them both to escape reasonably. Still, Metal could appreciate the character’s dramatic flair and supposed this could make the story more interesting down the line. He was eager to catch the next re-run the following Sunday.

The credits finished rolling and a few advertisements led into a cooking program. Not interesting. Metal flipped to the next channel to find an old black and white film playing. A gentleman escorted a lady out of her home, offering her his arm. She latched onto it as they walked across a promenade, the young lady chatting away as the man listened fondly. The scene reminded him of someone. He quickly flipped through a few channels as he heard Amy returning. 

“Well, it looks like we’re not meeting until tomorrow. Guess we can do whatever we want this afternoon.” Amy leaned against the back of the couch over Metal’s shoulder. “Anything good on?” He shrugged, pausing on a nature documentary. The screen showed a grassy plane speckled with violet blossoms, towering trees in full bloom losing flowers to the wind. Amy sighed. “Those are jacaranda trees- the first bloom announces the beginning of summer. I hope the one here flowers soon.” She looked through to the other side of the small living room, out the glass door. She motioned to a tall hill that sprouted from the opposite side of the valley. “It’s up there, same place I like to watch the sunset. There’s a pretty cliffside that faces the ocean. Pain to get up there though- Well, not for you I guess.”

Metal followed her gaze outward. The hills were no longer blanketed in snow, small patches of green beginning to emerge. It was captivating, watching the landscape reshape itself through the glass door like a portal. It was only a few days ago they were trekking through muddy snow, but now, the palms stood proudly upright and the sun dried sand glistened gently at midday. And although the days were tepid, evenings were still too chilly to find Amy outside without a coat or blanket, who wasn’t the most cold-resistant. The scenery changed daily but still looked recognizable. He wondered how it would appear in a few months, and if he’d stick around to see it. Metal wanted to see all of it before it changed any more.

He stretched as he stood up from the couch. Amy grinned, amused at the thought that Metal would feel stiff when his entire body was rigid. But he had seen her do it and she noticed him mimicking her from time to time; She found it cute. 

He looked to her, pointing a thumb toward the back door. Amy frowned. “You wanna go now? It’s still too cold up there,” she reasoned. He placed a fist on his hip disapprovingly and cocked his head to one side. “No way, I’ve had enough of this never-ending winter. You go ahead, I had something I wanted to get done today, anyway.” Metal shrugged back at her, rolling his eyes. She waved him off, ignoring his sassy response in favor of picking up around the couch by rearranging throw pillows and fluffing cushions. He silently wished for the weather to get warmer. 

“Have fun exploring. It’s nice when you can fly,” she chuckled as she took her empty cereal bowl to the kitchen. “I’ll be here when you get back.” Not easily deterred, Metal accepted her proposal to go alone and waved to her on his way out. Amy paused her bustling and looked around the threshold of the kitchen to him as he slid the door aside. “Metal, promise you won’t watch the sunset without me, okay?”

The whirring of Metal’s engine intensified as a sudden alarmed sensation overtook him. That’s right, she’d promised to take him to watch the sunset- he didn’t want to disappoint her. But why did the thought of watching together make him so nervous? Amy was giving him a strange look now. He found himself staring back at her for longer than was conformable, trying to come up with an appropriate response. Shooting her a thumbs-up was all he could come up with.

“Aha… Okay, well, take care,” she said before turning back to her dishes.

Metal hurried out the door, practically shooting into the sky. There was nothing out of the ordinary about that interaction, so, why did he feel so embarrassed? Perhaps it was because he wanted to express that he found Amy so much more interesting to watch than a setting sun. 

He shook his head furiously, pushing the thought away. The world was at his feet, there was nature to explore. Whether he’d experienced much of it before his memory loss, Metal didn’t know, but it beckoned him now. He turned his head toward the spot Amy had pointed out earlier. Still wanting a preview, he decided to take a look up there later- _before_ the sun began setting. _Embarrassment_. What a useless emotion.

There was a lot to see. Amy’s house was on a small private beach surrounded by hills big and small, some speckled with little hillside homes. A larger mountain loomed behind it all. The beach was just one of many valleys, a few of which were untouched by anything but the local fauna. They boasted little thickets of trees or small ponds. Metal spent most of the afternoon ducking in and out of wooded areas and up rocky hillsides. Grass was just starting to sprout everywhere he looked, slowly overtaking the rotted leaves littered across the ground from last autumn. He was surprised to find a clearing bursting with wild tulips that he examined for some time. Metal thought about bringing some back to Amy’s house, just as a souvenir. He then spent the better part of an hour picking only a few of the most perfect buds, the ones with the tallest stems and most symmetrical petals.

As his shadow grew long and Metal became satisfied with his very uniform bouquet, he decided it was time to head back home- that is, back to _Amy’s_ home. But he was interested in taking a look at the spot she had pointed out to him. If that tree could really announce warmer weather, he was curious as to how long it would be before it bloomed. He flew, finding the rolling cliffside Amy had described- a long, flat strip of land overlooking the western coastline. A single mature tree sat atop it. 

Metal lowered himself down near the edge of the cliff. The low sun was radiating brightly, reflecting off the glistening ocean. It wasn’t quite ready to hit the horizon, but the view was still breathtaking. He didn’t have long to appreciate it before a rustling behind him caused him to turn his attention abruptly, however.

“I never could sneak up on you.”

Sonic hung off a low branch from the tree confidently. He looked a lot less aggravated than when he’d stopped by the day before. Metal now understood Sonic’s violent response, but it didn’t seem to make him any more tolerant of the hedgehog. _Enemy_ flashed in his head like a siren. 

“Don’t worry, I’m not here to fight.” Sonic landed, taking steps towards Metal. The latter didn’t move. “Gotta say, I didn’t expect you to be the type to be a nature lover.” He stopped a few feet from Metal, not far from the cliff’s edge. “Did you come to watch the sunset?” Metal didn’t respond, instead turning away from him and starting in the direction of the jacaranda tree. Sonic noticed the tulips he was clutching in one hand. “Those for Amy?” he teased.

Metal’s head whipped back around to glare at him. Sonic didn’t return the stare, instead looking unimpressed. “You know, you can see Amy’s place from the other side of this cliff.” Metal remained still. “I’ve been watching you. You guys talked all night- well, Amy did all the talking,” he snickered. “I gotta say, you’re full of surprises.” 

Sonic was being a nuisance. Metal had no desire to stick around to be mocked. So, he continued on his way across the cliff.

“Me and you’ve been fighting for a long time, Metal. It’s weird seeing you on the same side.”

Metal stopped just next to the tree. It was the greenest thing he’d seen all day, as if it had never shed it leaves to begin with. He touched the trunk with his free hand, examining the leaves and branches. No vibrant purple flowers to be seen. It was still early in spring, after all. And Amy was right- it was much colder up here than on the beach.

“I couldn’t believe it when I saw you at Amy’s house yesterday.” Sonic took a few steps back toward Metal. “But you know what, I’m glad you’re becoming friends. She’s a great pal; sees the good in everyone. Even you.”

Even him. This implied that there was something deeply wrong with Metal, as if he was exceptionally heinous. What little he remembered of his past and his master was from the day he met Amy. It wasn’t a lot, but nevertheless impactful. He recalled a heavy sense of subjugation, a governing influence over his body and mind that he could do little to control. But could he really blame it all on that?

Sonic was in front of him now, arms crossed seriously. “For her sake, I really hope you’re not here to take advantage of that.”

Metal felt the cracked bark under his palm. Rough and slightly jagged. Given that Amy wouldn’t be happy if Metal lashed out, he had to focus on something to keep from shutting up his irksome rival by force. Even if he could express his genuine feelings to Sonic, Metal found it unlikely that he’d believe them. He turned his body toward Sonic, meeting his eyes. Instead of going for his throat, Metal placed a hand on his hip and bobbed his head around mockingly. Sonic didn’t seem to find it amusing.

“Cute,” he responded sarcastically. “All I’m saying is, this better not be an act.”

Metal’s eyes rolled dramatically. He held the tulips out in the direction of Amy’s house, as if to suggest he had somewhere better to be.

Sonic sighed in frustration. Metal was pleased that he seemed as annoyed as he was. “I’ve been looking out for Amy since we met. If you’re gonna be her friend, you better be willing to do the same. You know, maybe cover up those knife-hands of yours,” he smirked.

_Annoying_. Metal amended his memory file. He figured he might as well cross out enemy and see if it made him want to punch Sonic any less. He logged a photo of Sonic’s smug look before walking past him towards the cliff’s east side. The sun was beginning to touch the horizon Metal didn’t want to break his promise.

“Bring her up here some time. Amy likes to watch the sunset.”

Sonic sounded genuine that time. Metal didn’t bother responding, taking off from the cliffside and making his way down toward the beachy valley. Sonic watched him over his shoulder. Maybe there was something to Amy’s plan.

The sky was yellowing as he landed, the last rays of golden hour illuminating the little cabin warmly. Metal could spot Amy sitting at the dining table through the back door. She was tinkering with something, her full attention focused on whatever was in her hands. He watched her for a moment.

Amy noticed the light rapidly declining and looked up from her work. She was hand-sewing when she realized Metal was home. Waving to him, she quickly put her project away in her sewing box. Metal then pretended to look around as if he wasn’t just staring at her. Bemused, she hurried over to open the back door. “Metal! I was beginning to worry you were enjoying the sunset without me,” she laughed. “Come in. Oh, it’s chilly out.”

She quickly ducked back inside as Metal sauntered through, sliding the glass closed behind him. Amy was picking up loose threads and pins from the tabletop. “Did you have fun? You were gone longer than I expected.”

The nervousness that had overtaken Metal that morning suddenly returned as he made his way to hand Amy the flowers. They were admittedly rather windswept and didn’t look as lively as when he’d picked them. He worried she would find them ugly, but he couldn’t just get rid of them now. She was turning back to him already. Panicking, Metal brandished the bouquet high above him as if proudly holding a trophy. 

Amy’s face brightened. “Oh! How lovely. Let me get you a vase for your tulips.” 

_His_ tulips. As she walked past him to search a low cupboard, Metal felt somewhat disheartened. He wouldn’t admit to himself that he planned on gifting them to his host, but he felt cheated now that he hadn’t. She placed a tall fluted vase on the countertop from the other side of the kitchen. “Here, I’ll trim them for you.” Metal delivered them to her, and she took them in both hands, supporting the bulbs in one. That was probably the proper way to handle the delicate flowers, he thought.

Metal sat himself at the counter as Amy trimmed and arranged the bouquet. She filled the vase with chilled water from a pitcher to keep them fresh. Leaning over the counter, she sighed. “These really brighten up the place.” She turned to him. “You know, tulips are some of the first flowers to grow in the spring. They come out when the ground is still snowy. They represent new beginnings.” Amy giggled, her cheeks coloring slightly. “I think it’s really fitting.”

New beginnings. They were certainly suited to the occasion. Metal supposed it really did make it his arrangement, but there was no reason he couldn’t share. He reached for the flower that looked the most aesthetically pleasing to him, a sunny yellow bulb with gently curving petals. Picking it from the arrangement, he quickly placed it behind Amy’s ear. She looked rather bemused at his unexpected playfulness for a moment before bursting into laughter.

“For me? Thank you,” she giggled, adjusting it to sit more comfortably. “I love yellow- it’s so cheery!” She made her way around to give him a hug from behind. Metal’s engine buzzed. He wasn’t sure if it was due to excitement or panic.

She pulled away, looking back through the glass door. He joined her in watching. The sky was a hybrid of sunny yellow and romantic pink. Amy leaned on the back of Metal’s chair, enchanted by the dreamy colors. “I see it pretty much every day but it never stops being pretty, you know? I guess that’s the thing about sunsets.” 

Metal gazed on with her. He had grown to enjoy the daily event, never ceasing to be entertained by the brightly painted sky. It gave him a sense of calm that seemed to cure even the peculiar excitement he kept feeling around Amy. Still, he lamented that she was standing behind him and he was unable to watch the dreamy smile she wore whenever she sighed over something she found lovely. But it happened every day, after all. The opportunities were endless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope everyone is having a great week and staying well~ xo


	10. Indebted

“You told Knuckles, right?” Amy nervously held her communicator at eye level as she adjusted her scarf in the camera.

“I told you I did,” Tails responded. He was making the final preparations to his plane for takeoff. “Can you just come over already?”

Amy groaned. “I don’t want a repeat of last time!”

“Knuckles isn’t going to kill Metal.”

“Right…” she looked over to Metal, who was shifting his weight between feet impatiently. His jacket was draped over one arm.

“Just fly over. I’m almost ready for takeoff.”

“Are you sure you can fly with one hand?”

He shrugged. “Probably.”

It did little to ease her stress. “Okay, we’ll be there in a few.” Tails gave her a thumbs up before disconnecting, leaving Amy to look at her own troubled reflection in the dark screen. She sighed deeply, worried for what was to come. “Are you ready, Metal?” 

Sensing her distress, he stopped his fidgeting to give a nod. They would be flying to Angel Island that morning to meet with Amy’s friends- no, her team. Metal had already met most of them individually, but as a team, they had been his enemies for nearly a decade. It would be tense. First, however, they had to get Tails’ lab so she could board his plane.

Amy returned the nod and the pair got ready to take off outside. “I’ll take that for you.” She reached out for Metal’s jacket. “So it doesn’t wrinkle.” He handed it to her to fold neatly, though she held it so tightly that it creased under her anxious grasp anyway. 

Metal picked her up delicately. Since their encounter with Sonic, he treated her with kid gloves, afraid of causing another injury. Amy had noticed this and was tactfully avoiding bringing it up, even going as far as to cover her bandaged arm whenever they were together. It was sweet that he was being considerate, but his gingerly grip on her made her more nervous than a silly cut on her arm. “Metal, do you think you could hold me tighter?” Color rushed into her cheeks when she realized how forward it sounded. “So I don’t fall, I mean! Oh, not that I think you’ll drop me-” _Take your foot out of your mouth_ , she scolded herself.

The same nervous excitement from a day earlier hit him and he stiffened suddenly. She was right, the fragility with which he was holding her could cause him to lose his grip if he wasn’t careful. Metal’s arms tightened around Amy as she settled into him, her red face buried in his jacket. She looked oddly… _endearing_ that way- what a clumsy feeling.

“I’m ready when you are,” she mumbled, her voice muffled by the fabric.

They propelled into the sky at a much slower pace than usual. Amy peeked out from her satiny hiding place when she noticed. They were running late as it was. “Um, you can go a little faster. I’ll be okay,” she assured. Metal obliged, though she was well aware that they still weren’t moving as quickly as they could. Luckily, their destination wasn’t far.

Tails was already hurrying Amy along the moment they landed on the runway. “Come on, you know how Knuckles gets,” he insisted. 

“Okay!” she huffed, climbing into the back seat of the small plane. Amy was still scrambling to get her goggles on as the engine started.

“Ready for takeoff. Try to keep up, Metal,” Tails grinned.

“Tails!” Amy snapped before Metal could so much as make a noise.

He snickered as the plane accelerated forward and lifted off the end of the runway, Metal following closely. He hovered near Amy’s seat as they flew, though she nervously looked straight ahead for most of the flight. As they approached their floating destination, Tails pointed out the landing site- a spacious clearing at the edge of a dense forest. Metal cut ahead of them, doing a flashy set of loops in the air before spiraling to the ground and looking back up at Tails expectantly. 

“Psh. Show-off.” Tails remarked. “Think we can beat that?”

“No!” Amy felt sick enough as it was. Tails seemed to be enjoying himself though, laughing in response.

Once on the ground, Amy unbuckled herself and exited hastily. The tall plane was harder to jump out of than it was to climb into, but she’d done it dozens of times- not that knowing this would have stopped Metal from hurrying over to offer her a hand. 

“See?” Tails said smugly. “Told ya I could fly with just one hand.”

Amy rolled her eyes at Tails as Metal helped her down. “Thanks. Here,” she offered Metal his jacket and smoothed down her hair and scarf while he slipped it on. She moved on to smoothing out the wrinkles in the satin across his shoulders and adjusted the collar, looking Metal up and down. “There. I think you look pretty friendly.” Taking each of his hands in hers, her brow curled anxiously. “Remember what we talked about, ‘kay?”

Metal had spent much of the morning listening to Amy as she got ready, rambling the team dynamics and how their meetings usually went. “We work with some other people, but usually discuss things between ourselves before getting anyone else involved,” she’d told him. “So it’s kind of a big deal that you’re coming. Thanks for agreeing to it.” Then she’d flashed her usual sweet grin, though she let out a sigh at the same time. “So, just sit and listen, and get to know everyone! I really think you can get along well.” Metal wasn’t sure if she was trying to convince him or herself.

Just having someone new at the table might cause tension, but he had a feeling that who that someone was would factor into the strain more than anything. He couldn’t remember any of their encounters or battles- but they could. What’s more, the threat they were discussing was Metal’s very creator; he didn’t know how he would feel or if he’d agree to help if asked. There were too many unanswered questions and he knew he couldn’t follow Amy around forever; at some point he would have to learn about his old life. It was only fair to be informed about how it could affect the people that showed him kindness. How it could affect _her_. 

Now they were minutes away from this meeting, the importance of which couldn’t be overstated for Amy. She wouldn’t say it directly, but she was anxiously putting her faith in Metal, hoping he wouldn’t have another outburst akin to their encounter with Sonic. After recalling how they’d all met, his actions, though well-meaning, were admittedly threatening. He would have to show more restraint.

“Oh! Here,” Amy fished a little notebook and pen from her coat pocket. “In case you need it. Sorry, the whiteboard was a little cumbersome for the flight.” Metal took them with a nod, tucking them away in his jacket. 

A gust of wind blew Amy’s hair over her face and caused her scarf to whip around uncontrollably. Sonic had rushed in, skidding to a halt just past the trio. “Hey! What took ya so long?” 

“I just fixed this,” Amy groaned, combing down her quills. Tails made his way over to greet Sonic as she readjusted her scarf for the third time.

“Don’t worry, Ames, it’s just us.” Sonic turned his attention to Metal momentarily. “And you, I guess. Hey, isn’t that Amy’s jacket?”

Metal crossed his arms and chimed indignantly. “It’s, uh, his now,” she replied sheepishly.

“Oh-kay. Hey, Tails, why don’t you take Metal and go ahead. I wanna catch up with Amy real quick.”

The two hadn’t spoken since the incident. Neither of them wanted the meeting to be any more uncomfortable than necessary, and apologies were no doubt in order. “Do you mind, Metal?” she turned to him with her gentle request. He shrugged nonchalantly with a hand at his hip, doing a poor job at concealing his annoyance.

Tails beckoned to him. “Come on, it’s not far.” Metal joined the boy, following him on the path ahead. He took a quick look back at the pair just in time to spot Sonic placing a hand on Amy’s shoulder.

“You alright, Amy?”

She nodded, her cheeks turning rosy. “Mhm. I’m sorry about the other day- I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that...”

“Come on, we both know I’m used to your temper by now,” he teased. “But, you know, sorry if I sounded like I don’t trust you.”

“Do you, though?”

“Of course! But Metal Sonic- I mean, he just flew off with you- like before. I was worried, Ames.”

It was reassuring to hear him admit his concern. Amy understood that Sonic cared for her- but after all their years of friendship, she wondered if he’d ever feel any other way about her. When she recalled the hand she’d drawn at her reading so many years ago, Amy couldn’t help but ponder over her interpretation of it. Lately, it felt more and more like her crush would never be anything more than that. Still, hearing him admit any kind of affection for her made Amy melt. She met his eyes and smiled sheepishly. “Thanks, Sonic. I know you’re worried, but Metal’s been doing great. It sounds silly, but I think he was trying to protect me.”

“That so?” 

She shrugged. “Well, he didn’t do it for shock value.”

Sonic’s usual grin returned to his face. “Well, either way, I can’t be too worried; I’ve seen you knock him around pretty good since the first time he kidnapped you,” he snickered. 

Amy smiled along, though being reminded made her uncomfortable. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“Look, I think what you’re doing is great. Just promise you’ll keep your guard up, alright?”

“Sure,” she agreed. Amy sincerely felt that she was safe with metal, but it wasn’t worth continuing the argument. She was sure that Sonic would see that soon enough.

“Anyway, we’re late. Let’s get going before Knuckles loses it.”

The two set off on a well-worn path through the thicket of trees that grew denser as they went. A rocky clearing led into a burrow, where they found the others waiting for them. A pile of pillows and cushions were laid out against one wall in a circle- their usual seating arrangement on the floor. Knuckles and Tails had taken their usual seats, studying some documents that lay before them. Tails picked up a map to take a closer look. Metal was standing cross-armed near the entrance as the chilly air spilled in from the outside. Though Amy was strung tighter than a mandolin, she still did her best to give him a reassuring look on her way in.

Knuckles looked up as the duo entered. “About time. Amy, c’mere and sit next to me.”

“Oh, um, sure.” She usually sat next between him and Sonic anyway; it was odd he asked her to sit with him specifically. She took a seat on a cushion next to his and he immediately threw an arm around her, pulling her in close. Amy sensed Metal was putting his guard up.

“Amy, care to tell me why you’ve brought a killer enemy robot to my home?”

Despite the chill, Amy was beginning to sweat. She laughed softly in an attempt to lighten the mood. “Stop kidding around, Knuckles. We’re all friends here.”

Knuckles didn’t find it so funny. “Am I the only one who remembers when your ‘friend’ stole the Master Emerald and sent my home plummeting to the ground?”

Sonic sat next to her, grinning. Amy ignored him, looking instead toward Metal and making a patting motion with her hand, signaling to keep calm. “Come on, Knuckles, that was years ago. Besides, Metal doesn’t remember doing that.”

“That doesn’t make it okay!”

She pushed him away. “Ugh! Would you calm down? You’re yelling in my ear.” 

“I think the situation warrants some yelling, Amy!”

Sonic was snickering nearby; payback for all the times she and Tails teased him and Knuckles about their petty bickering. If looks could kill, she would have harpooned him with her eyes. Sonic cleared his throat, quickly gathering himself. “Relax, Knuckles. Amy says Metal’s safe, so he’s safe. Right, Tails?”

“Huh?” Too entranced in the map to notice the argument, Tails looked up upon hearing his name. “Oh, yeah. We took his weapons, anyway,” he shrugged.

Amy turned her deadly glare to Tails, who quickly hid behind his map again. “Who’s ‘we’? _You_ did that.” Trying to avoid antagonizing Metal, Amy hadn't exactly made it known that Tails went beyond repairs when he was working on him. This wasn’t the gentlest way for Metal to find out. 

“I think it was a good call,” Sonic remarked. She scoffed back indignantly.

Metal was looking to Amy, who turned back to him with an apologetic expression. They hadn’t been there for two minutes and the meeting was already a trainwreck. He’d expected the heightened reactions, but learning that whatever weapons he was once equipped with were just taken from him without consent was an unpleasant surprise. Despite not remembering what he’d lost, he felt somewhat betrayed. Perhaps Amy still had her guard up along with the others.

Taking a deep breath, Amy addressed the room. “Guys, let’s settle down, there’s business to discuss. Metal, come sit with us,” she motioned to him. Narrowing his eyes in Metal’s direction, Knuckles grumbled something under his breath. “Quit it already,” Amy elbowed him. He conceded, letting out an exasperated breath as Metal sat across from them, remaining further out of the circle than the others.

The team all turned to Sonic expectantly while Metal sat watching Amy. Her anxiety grew again as she felt his eyes on her and she was reminded of their first meeting. 

“Well, now that that’s out of the way,” Sonic began, “Let’s talk shop. Tails?”

He nodded. “So, last time we encountered Eggman, he ran off before the fight was finished.”

“So, we decided to go after him,” Sonic interjected. “I went looking for him the next day, but there were no flashy hideaways or ‘secret’ factory- none of his usual antics.”

“Then I saw this.” Tails tossed a newspaper into the center of the circle and Amy and Knuckles leaned in for a closer look. _Magic City Under Way_ , read the main headline. Concept art of three tall, tower-like buildings was illustrated, followed by a smaller photo of a crew breaking ground at a construction site. A familiar rotund figure stood at the center proudly.

“Eggman?” Knuckles picked up the paper for a better look. “What’s he building?”

“Some kind of theme park by the looks of it,” Tails suggested.

Knuckles scoffed, tossing the paper aside. “That’s his usual schtick- let’s just go after him already.”

“Nothing to go after,” Sonic replied. “He’s usually building these things in secret, right? Using some weird tech to pull off his evil scheme. And now, he’s just out in the open. What’s that about?”

Amy picked up the newspaper, skimming through the article. “ _Magic City._ I heard about this project- is Eggman really behind it? He usually sticks his face on everything, but this looks normal.”

“Yeah, that’s cause there’s nothing out of the ordinary going on there. I spent the better part of a week hanging around that construction site. I even talked with some crew members and snooped around the place, but it was just your average build site. Everyone acted totally normal-”

“Pah, sounds like some mind control junk to me,” Knuckles interrupted.

Tails leaned in. “That’s what we thought, too. But none of the crew seemed brainwashed. And look at this,” he pulled up some photos on a digital tablet, scrolling through. “Budgeting sheets, payroll…”

“Just like any other jobsite,” Sonic confirmed. “Why would you need HR if you’re using mind-control?”

“Sonic even found blueprints for the buildings. The one on the left is basically just a hotel. There’s a few restaurants, a casino on the bottom floor... This one has a nightclub and an indoor amusement park,” he pointed out. “And none of his usual traps, either. Everything looks totally normal. It’s just… an entertainment complex?”

Amy looked puzzled. “So, what, he’s an entrepreneur now?” 

Knuckles leaned back against the wall, looking up in thought. “He’s gotta be hiding something.” 

“Yeah,” Tails agreed. “And by the looks of it, this photo was taken on the day we battled- you know.”

The team turned to look at Metal. He gazed at each of them momentarily, noting their concerned expressions. “Metal,” Amy said, “Do you remember anything from that day? Before Tails and I found you?” He’d scanned what little was left of his memory enough times to know the answer. Metal shook his head right away, being met with disbelief from Knuckles.

“I don’t buy it. Metal Sonic has to be a spy- why else would he be here?”

“Knuckles, there's no way,” Amy looked to Tails for support. “You searched through all his stuff, right? He doesn’t remember anything.”

Tails half-nodded. “Well, yeah- to my knowledge. There was a lot of encrypted data- but it’s inaccessible in theory. He definitely can’t be tracked, though.”

“So how can we be sure then?” Knuckles returned.

“I trust Amy’s judgement,” Sonic said with a matter-of-fact tone. Surprised to hear him admit it to the team, Amy’s face softened into a look of admiration as she faced him. He probably should have felt grateful for the support, but Metal was displeased with Sonic’s playful wink back at her. “Besides, what’s Eggman gonna find out if he _is_ spying? That we have no clue what he’s up to?”

Sonic had a point. There was silence as the team sat in thought, each pondering about possible scenarios or trying to come up with a plan of action. Metal could see this going on for an hour. He didn’t remember anything from that day, but he might if something jogged his memory. So, he tapped his sharp fingers against the ground and Amy’s ears perked up.

“Oh! That’s right,” she sat up straight. “Metal _was_ able to remember the day Sonic and I met him when I told him about it. Maybe we can tell him about...” Her posture immediately became hunched when she realized what it meant. She recalled how broken his body still was inside, a sense of guilt casting down on her.

Tails’ eyes widened with excitement. “No kidding? I gotta take a look at him again!”

“More importantly,” Sonic added, “we gotta tell him about that battle and see if he remembers anything.”

Knuckles chimed in. “How do we know Metal Sonic won’t suddenly remember some objective to, I don’t know, kill us?”

The way they spoke about him like he wasn’t in the room did nothing to make Metal feel welcome. He knew he’d be far from their acceptance, but being viewed as an object to be poked and prodded was far more demeaning. Trust could be earned, but would they ever see him as something other than a machine? Amy kept calling him a _friend_. So what did it mean that she kept his “modifications” a secret?

“Metal,” Amy interrupted the boys’ musings, “would you be okay with that?” She side-eyed her teammates as she continued. “We wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

He returned with a lazy shrug, looking away from the others. Reliving a defeat at the hands of these people- the people he was meant to associate with, who were suddenly giving him reasons to be distrustful- he wasn’t sure how he’d feel. It wasn’t about losing his weapons; after all, he hadn’t needed them since Amy found him. If asked now, he would disarm himself willingly as long as he was staying with her. But perhaps his debt of gratitude amounted to more than accompanying her on trips and helping her down from high places. Now, it felt like Amy’s kindness could come at the expense of his autonomy. It was hardly a fair choice. Metal wished he was anywhere but that burrow.

“We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Amy assured him. Knuckles looked like he was about to say something but she jabbed her elbow in his side again, rendering his complaint into an intelligible grumble. Metal wasn’t responding. He looked aloof, casting his gaze sideways to avoid eye contact. Amy had seen that look in him before, quickly recognizing his discomfort. She picked herself up and crossed the circle to meet Metal at the other side, kneeling next to him. “Hey,” Amy placed a hand on his shoulder, “remember that you can choose from now on, right?” She leaned in close to whisper. “We’ll talk about the other stuff after the meeting, promise.”

There was something in her kind voice and gentle touch that continued to stir him. Amy’s warmth seeped into Metal’s steely joints and melted his icy façade until he could no longer guard himself against her. She could give him all the choices in the world, but obliging Amy was quickly turning into a compulsion; one that, he suddenly realized, was about more than just his gratitude. Pleasing her seemed to bring him an unexpected and immeasurable satisfaction; It was inexplicable. He would endure any manner of painful memory if she only asked him to- but she _wasn’t_ asking. She wouldn’t. Metal had to decide for himself. He considered all her kindness, yet wasn’t any happier about the “other stuff,” as she put it. It was as painful as it was confusing.

Tails’ worried voice shook Metal from his daze. “Hey, is he okay?” The uncomfortably long silence that had filled the room was impeded only by the whirring crescendo of Metal’s engine. He caught sight of Amy’s concerned stare first, then the vexed faces of the rest of the team. 

“Do you... need a minute?” she asked hesitantly.

Metal quickly shook his head, wanting to get all their peering eyes off of him.

Amy sighed as her hand left his shoulder. “Metal, do you want to hear about the battle the other day? It’s okay if you don’t.” He nodded hesitantly to no one in particular, reasoning that he may as well remember what he could. It wasn’t the answer Amy was hoping to hear. A grimace spread across her face as she immediately began thinking of tactful ways to approach the story. Before the pause had a chance to become awkward, Sonic chimed in.

“Alright, so here’s how we kicked your-”

“Sonic!” Amy sent her piercing glare at him once more. 

“What? That’s what happened,” Sonic grinned. He caught Metal rolling his eyes.

“I can tell it, Amy,” Tails chimed in. Amy responded with a begrudging nod and he continued. “So, late afternoon, we received a distress call about Eggman and Metal causing a fuss close to town. We expected to find more of his badniks hanging around, but it was just you and him there. You’d set off a few missiles at some rocks-”

“Eggman said you were just doing ‘target practice,’ trying to sound innocent” Knuckles scoffed.

“Right. So, we told him to get lost, but he said he wasn’t doing anything wrong and ordered Metal to continue-”

“I intercepted and shot the next missile right back at you,” Sonic cut in with a smirk. “Really set you off.”

Tails nodded. “Then you two started fighting. Eggman said something about you finishing practice on your own and took off, which was weird, ‘cause he usually sticks around. Anyway, Sonic and Metal headed into the valley, so I sort of followed you…”

“Then you broke Tails’ wrist,” Sonic commented, looking directly at Metal. “Right, Ames?” Amy frowned apologetically and answered with a shrug. 

“Yeah...” Tails continued. “But anyway-”

Knuckles interrupted impatiently. “You flew up the hillside and Amy knocked Sonic into you with her hammer. End of battle,” he grunted. “So do you remember anything or what?”

An immense guilt befell Amy the moment her name left his lips. Metal watched as she avoided looking at him, fidgeting with the tassels on her scarf anxiously. Battles aren’t friendly- Metal didn’t fault her for attacking him when they were enemies. The story actually impressed him where she was concerned, but it didn’t give him the epiphany that Amy’s tale had. He remembered nothing.

“Well?” Knuckles insisted.

Metal turned to him and shook his head plainly.

“Tch. What a waste of time…”

“Back to the drawing board,” Sonic remarked.

Tails looked back at the newspaper with a smiling Eggman on the cover. “The battle was probably just to keep us from crashing this party. Eggman knew we’d come after him if he caused a racket, then he ran off when we were distracted so we couldn’t interrupt. I guess he really wasn’t doing anything other than making noise, though.”

Sonic yawned lazily. “You make it sound like we started the fight.”

“We kinda did,” Amy mumbled under her breath.

Sonic stood up, stretching his arms. “Well, nothing we can do about this now. We’ll just have to keep an eye on it.”

“Calling a meeting with no plan,” Knuckles followed, “typical.”

“Hey, I want us all to be on guard. There’s no telling what scheme this could lead to. We’d better be ready.”

“I’m always ready!” Knuckles boomed. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve been away long enough waiting for all of you to show up.” He marched across to stand over Amy, offering her a hand. She pulled herself up with Metal following her lead. “So you’re keeping an eye on Metal Sonic.” he grinned at her proudly. “Pretty brave, kid.” She clicked her tongue at him, giving him a lighthearted shove. Knuckles turned his attention to Metal’s looming figure with narrowing eyes. “I’d better be wrong about you.”

Metal knew that her teammate’s suspicions were justified and it would be hard to prove him otherwise. He crossed his arms and gave Knuckles a single nod. Knuckles returned with a nod of his own before glancing down at the rose-shaped patch on the front of Metal’s jacket with an amused scoff. He waved himself out before Amy had a chance to become aggrieved over it.

“Long way to fly for such a short meeting,” Tails sighed from across the room. He gathered his things hastily and booked it toward the front. “Let’s head back, I have something I _gotta_ finish.”

“Right behind you, buddy.” Sonic made his way across. “Ames?”

She leaned her body towards Metal. “Actually, could you give us a minute?” 

Sonic’s brow furrowed. “Shouldn’t you guys get going?”

Before Amy could respond, Metal draped an arm over her shoulder. Their eyes met and he cocked his head sideways confidently. Amy got the message. “Well, if you’re sure…” she turned back to her teammates. “Why don’t you guys take the plane? Metal can give me a ride.” 

Tails and Sonic looked at each other in confusion. “I guess,” Tails said. “Do you want a ride?”

Sonic shifted to look back at Metal. How the robot managed to look cocky even with his usual expression, he did not know. At the risk of losing another staring contest, Sonic gave Amy a wave and started toward the exit. “Sounds good. Catch ya later.” Amy returned the wave as he and Tails went off, Metal straightening himself back up once they were out of sight.

Amy then exhaled so severely that her entire body slumped. She didn’t think she’d ever feel so tense around her friends, and having kept the meeting mostly civil was an incredible relief. Unfortunately, there was another can of worms to deal with. She just managed to suppress a groan before addressing it.

“Thanks for coming, Metal. You did great today; But I thought Knuckles was gonna lunge at you for sure,” she chuckled. In a rather puffed up manner, with a hand at his hip, Metal gave her a sly shrug. Amy couldn’t keep from snorting at how pleased he looked with himself. “Don’t look so smug, he’s beat you up before,” she teased. He turned back to her with a resentful chime. It was incredible to Amy how comfortable they were together- she never would have expected to become such fast friends with a former (and very recent) enemy. But there they were, a few days into their new relationship, cordial and playful as if lifelong friends. All this even as they both knew a serious topic was approaching. She braced herself, her eyes cast down nervously.

“I’m sorry, Metal. I know taking your things was wrong. I blamed Tails, but I never really said anything, and then I kept it from you- but I’ll make sure you get everything back.” She twiddled her fingers together.

The sincere apology made Metal want to forgive her immediately, but the strange hurt he still felt didn’t allow him to. It didn’t make sense- he wasn’t angry anymore, she apologized, he understood their fear was not unfounded; so why couldn’t he feel _okay_ about it? It may have been the realization that being autonomous wouldn’t be the same for him- how could it be? As quickly as she warmed up to him, even Amy didn’t see him as a _person_ right away. Maybe some never would. It wouldn’t be fair to rely on her advocacy, either- counting on her to mediate every tense situation was hardly _freedom_. And then there was the worry that his only affection for Amy was out of an innate need for guidance. 

Pulling the notepad from his pocket, Metal scribbled some words down. He ripped the leaf from its binding to hand to her. Amy glanced up at him momentarily before taking it. “You didn’t ask,” it read.

“I know I’m sorry,” she sighed. “Do you think you would’ve said yes?”

Metal pondered for a moment. He would have weighed his options at the time, but the moment had passed and he wasn’t so sure now. One thing was certain, however: if she’d asked him now, he wouldn’t think twice before agreeing. Metal handed her the next note with some hesitation as he admitted this. “You can ask for anything” was written neatly on it.

Amy didn’t know what to say. It was incredibly kind, but only made her feel more guilty that she had betrayed his trust early on. “Then, I guess I’ll ask you to forgive me- if you can.” Her ears drooped as the words grew ever remorseful. “And for hurting you, too. I feel like it's my fault you lost your memory in the first place.”

But that wasn’t something he would have to forgive her for. Instead, he carefully wrote his feelings, tearing the leaf from its binding gently. Metal locked eyes with her as he nervously placed it in her hand. “Thank you for finding me.”

She didn’t have an opportunity to respond. The second Amy looked up, Metal closed the gap between them, pulling her close into a hug. Her face flushed as a small gasp escaped her lips. Before she knew it, she was returning his embrace tenderly. “Dummy- I’m trying to apologize here,” she protested, though her swishing tail seemed to contradict any complaints. There were few things Amy enjoyed more than friendly affection, and considering the incredible embarrassment she felt after their last hug, she relished in his readiness to hold her. “I’m glad we found each other, too.”

As they slid away from one another, Amy combed through the front of her hair, pulling it over to conceal her blushing cheeks. “You know, this isn’t even the first time I find you in the snow…” Metal tilted his head curiously, so she continued. “Well, first time, it was a couple of years after we met. You’d been laying there a while- actually, I think it was after Knuckles took back the Master Emerald from you. He can really throw a punch,” she chuckled. “But you know, you seemed so sad. We were enemies then, but I helped you get back home because, well, I guess I thought it would change things. Don’t know if it really made a difference, though.”

Defeat. Snow. Amy’s mercy and kindness. It was like déjà vu; Metal could suddenly remember each encounter individually, the earliest of which was just as vivid a memory as the most recent. He dropped the notepad and pen and took her hands excitedly, looking into her widening eyes. An exuberant smile spread across Amy’s face in realization.

“You remember!” Her fingers tightened around his delicately. “I don’t know what happened after that, but, I hope it’s a happy memory for you.”

He recalled how indifferently he acted toward her help then. He knew who Amy was, but whatever memory he possessed of their first encounter had been gutted. All he remembered as she dragged him through the snow was holding her captive and being defeated. No empathetic smile, no tarot reading, no kind words- she was just a footnote in his files by the time she found him; just like had been a few days ago. Though he had scarcely tried to communicate with her, the unfamiliar comfort her care provided compelled him to relent. And despite how unresponsive he had been Amy still lent him her aid. She’s offered him a hand time and time again without holding it over him. Perhaps that was why all the small ways in which he returned the favor brought him such pleasure.

Metal nodded. He didn’t remember anything after she left his side then, but finally understanding the mixed emotions that went through his head that cold day did bring him joy. It was close enough.

“I’m glad…” Amy sheepishly unlatched her fingers from his and clasped her hands in front of her face, concealing her rosy cheeks. “I guess… we should head home? We can take off from where we landed.”

Metal turned toward the exit, impulsively offering Amy his arm. She looked astonished for a moment before latching onto him with a giggle.

“Where did you learn to be a gentleman? I’m surprised you have it in you.” 

Metal’s smug tones and exaggerated head-bobbing gave her more to laugh and tease him about as they made their way out and through the forest. He didn’t mind. Every time they started back to Amy’s house together, it felt more like home.

\---

Everything in the burrow echoed and could be heard from the outside if one knew where to listen from; And Knuckles knew just the spot. “About time,” he grumbled, watching as the pair sauntered out of sight from behind a thick tree trunk. He re-entered the space to find Metal’s pen and notepad left behind on the ground. _So that’s how he was communicating_. Annoyed that they had left their trash behind, Knuckles picked up both items with the intention of throwing them in the bin, but stopped when he noticed a short note written on the first page. He grinned as he read it. _Probably knows I was listening,_ he thought. It didn’t really come as a surprise that Metal left it behind for Knuckles to find, but the words and their sentiment were unexpected.

He ripped the page out of the book to keep. Knuckles would have to hold Metal to his word: “I will prove you wrong.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading~ hope you're all surviving this cursed election week
> 
> ((yes i could have picked one of several canon names for the amusement park yes i decided to call it magic city because i’m from miami (: fight me abt it))


	11. Thoughtful

It had been some years since Amy seriously studied and read the cards. There was a time when she would perform daily tarot pulls first thing each morning, reflecting on a goal for the day and reading a single card for guidance. It was rare that her insights led her astray, but the entire practice had fallen to the wayside in the past two years. Her friends found her uncanny predictions too eerie and refused to indulge her any further. Without anyone to share her talents with, Amy became dispirited with fortune-telling, and her interest faded over time. Now, ever since she’d taken the opportunity to recount her earliest readings with her house guest, Amy began to doubt her ability to interpret the cards at all. After years of convincing herself that patience and perseverance would manifest her romantic intentions to no avail, she decided it was finally time to revisit and reinterpret that faithful hand. 

Though she’d never gone, Amy knew of a semi-annual gathering of fortune-tellers and spiritualists that occurred on the equinox. Spring equinox was just around the corner and it was there, Amy hoped, she could find some additional wisdom and guidance. But first, it was time to get reacquainted with her favorite deck. 

Amy looked at her nightstand. A sunny tulip rested in a jar over a ceramic coaster. She pulled a deck box from the drawer, clearing a thin film of dust from atop its wooden frame. She set off on the ritual of cleansing and charging that had so long been neglected before finally preparing for her daily pull. A shuffle and an affirmation later, Amy picked the top card from her deck with a nervous breath. The Page of Cups. Creativity, intuition, and the inner child.

A nostalgic smile spread across Amy’s cheeks as memories of her earliest studies and readings danced across her mind. So many years were spent faithfully cultivating her understanding of the practice and training her abilities. It used to be therapeutic- fun, even. She remembered feeling optimistic and prepared for each opportunity. But after so many hardships, predicting the next challenge began to feel tactful, stressful. At what point did she stop looking forward to the day ahead? 

Amy decided that it was high time she reconnected with that childish enthusiasm. If nothing else, it would help her understand her reading better. She looked back on all her time spent at the library reading every tome and pamphlet she could find on tarot and resolved to visit her local branch that very day. After a short while getting ready, she emerged from her bedroom much later than intended.

It was close to noon. Amy had skipped breakfast and there was hardly a thing to eat in her fridge. “Guess I neglected the groceries again,” she sighed to herself. Another errand to run for the day. Metal wasn’t in the living room, so she stepped out through the backdoor to find him crouching close to the shore some ways away. He turned to look at her when she called out to him, beckoning her over. 

“Good morning.” Amy joined her friend near the seashore, leaning over his shoulder. “Whatcha looking at?” Metal lifted his hand. A hermit crab crawled over his fingers slowly, a smaller shell sitting in Metal’s palm. The smaller one was long and prickly while the crab wore a much smoother and opalescent shell as it crawled around Metal’s hand. “Made a new friend?” Amy giggled. She crouched next to him but the sudden movement scared the critter into hiding. “Oh, oops… sorry.”

Metal handed Amy the crab’s old shell. She examined its ridges and dull spines. “Did it just molt?” Metal nodded as the crab began to stir in his hand again. He turned back to watch it. “It’s so cute,” she sighed. “You’ve been out here a while, huh? It really warmed up to you.” Metal emitted a soft mechanical ring and slowly lowered his hand onto the beach. The crab scuttled around his palm for another moment before hesitantly climbing down onto the sand. He observed as it burrowed down through the sand and disappeared, leaving its tiny footprints in the damp ground. 

Amy couldn’t keep her eyes off Metal. A dreamy expression made its way onto her face as she watched his gentle interaction with the little creature, the heartwarming sight inviting a soft flush into her cheeks. _So sweet_ , she thought, once again noticing his careful demeanor. Their feuding seemed so far away now.

The tide nipping at their feet soon brought Amy out of her trance. “Don’t get too wet,” she cautioned as she straightened herself and took some steps back from the chilly water.

It took Metal another moment to get up. He’d spent the last hour crouched there, keeping the vulnerable critter company as it hesitantly came out of its shell, exposing itself to the harsh world for the opportunity to grow in its new home. Metal had pushed the new shell closer to the crab and stood over it like a scarecrow ready to fend off any stray predators. When it was finally settled in its new home, Metal continued to sit still as it scuttled across the sand slowly, like a child breaking in a new pair of shoes. Finally, the crab thanked Metal by climbing onto his outstretched hand and entertaining him for a short while. Then it simply went about continuing its day. Melancholy made its presence aware as Metal thought about how incredibly temporary the interaction was. He lifted himself off the wet sand and stood back near Amy, listening to the gentle waves coming ashore. She tapped him on the shoulder.

“Are you gonna keep it?” She held the spiny shell out in her hand. 

He looked at it briefly before placing an uncertain hand on the shell. Amy met his eyes with an encouraging smile. Taking it in his hand, Metal examined the crab’s former home and committed its many ridges to memory before placing it back in the sand.

“Oh, good call. It’ll be useful for the next crab that comes along, huh?” Amy breathed the salty air in deeply, thinking about the day ahead. “I’m heading to the library, then I need to do a little shopping. Wanna come?”

\----

The friends made their way into town after a quick stop to get Amy some breakfast. She’d brought a wheeled shopping trolley along to carry her groceries back and suggested they walk. “It’s so nice out,” she’d insisted. But Amy had neglected to mention the very uncomfortable bus ride that came along with that suggestion. All eyes were on them as they rode- or more accurately, on Metal. Perhaps they recognized him, or perhaps the sight alone was just strange enough to incite a reaction. Amy continued jabbering to him, attempting to make a pointy unblinking robot casually riding the bus with his companion seem more normal. Unfortunately, it only served to draw more attention to the pair. They couldn’t arrive at their stop fast enough.

They seemed to attract just as many stares inside the library, though some apparent social norms kept strangers from ogling or whispering too obviously once they were inside. Amy practically dragged Metal by the arm from section to section, mumbling “Sorry,” to him between forced waves and smiles to anyone that recognized her. “They’ll get used to it, don’t worry.” 

Amy picked up several volumes as they traversed the building: A sewing guide for a project she’d hit a snag on, a cookbook whose instructions she would likely ignore in favor of preparing meals her own way, and a couple of novels to keep her entertained at bedtime. All the while, people stopped to look at Metal, some whispering to their companions when he walked past. As his irritation grew, so did the constant whirring of his engine. The buzzing became painfully apparent and worried glances in his direction shifted to those of annoyance. A particularly stern-looking librarian shushed him as they walked past her. Metal shot a glare back at the brave woman who returned with a sour look. Amy whispered an apology and dragged him away before the woman could give them a verbal warning.

Amy then spent longer than she’d wanted browsing the occult section. There wasn’t even a large collection- but she felt so out of practice as she skimmed through each of the newer books individually, looking for answers to her questions. She nearly brought half a dozen back with her before realizing they took up a third of the space in her trolley. Settling for the two that seemed the most promising, she placed the last of the books in her basket while ignoring one librarians’ concerned stares. “Anything you want me to check out for you, Metal?” she whispered.

He’d been browsing along with her, though none of the topics she’d looked at were interesting to him. She eventually convinced him to give a pair of her favorite novels a shot before continuing to the checkout counter and transacting with a very distressed clerk. Amy tried making her usual small talk with the man as he was regularly quite chatty, but he clammed up as Metal loomed behind her through the process. The annoyance was becoming harder for Amy to disguise.

Several more bystanders took a double-take at Amy and Metal on their short walk to the market, someone narrowly avoiding crashing their bike into a fence pole while gaping at the pair. Amy’s face held an unusually irritable expression as she completed her shopping in record time with Metal trailing restlessly behind. Most people turned and hid away the moment he made eye contact with them, but he couldn’t help having his guard up in such an unfriendly environment.

As they checked out, the two women that queued behind them stood far away. They clicked their tongues and whispered spitefully. Metal had heard every breath and murmur that had been uttered around him all day, but Amy could just barely pick up pieces of the womens’ conversation. “Dangerous,” and “appalling” made their way to her ears as she paid for the groceries. Metal’s discomfort may have been apparent only to her, but it was no excuse for the harsh words. Livid was an understatement. 

She turned to them with a sudden glare, raising her voice. “Do you two have something to say?” 

Taken aback, the women turned away somewhat shamefully. They continued to side-eye Metal as Amy finished her transaction with a rather alarmed cashier, putting away the rest of her purchase. Once they assumed Amy was out of earshot, however, they continued their hushed conversation. “It’s an absolute monster,” one of them remarked. 

Metal froze momentarily. Countless thoughts ran across his mind. Remembering his frightening appearance in Amy’s mirror some days ago stood out. The unwelcome feeling he’d had during the team meeting came rushing back. He also recalled how it took nothing to lose his cool when Sonic showed up and how crucial it was to keep it from happening again. Then, he noticed the pure rage in Amy’s face as she whipped her head back around, eyes blazing at the women queued behind them. 

“How dare you!” Amy took a menacing step toward the women as they gasped and scrambled backward some paces. “How could you possibly be this rude? Apologize!” The ladies turned to the cashier, stammering something about calling security. “Did you hear me? Apologize to my friend right now!” 

By that time, a small crowd had formed around the queue. Amy didn’t back down, taking further steps toward the gossiping crones, causing them to scutter back into the throng of customers. “Ma’am,” the cashier began nervously, “I’m- uh- I’m going to have to ask you to leave, please.”

“Are you serious?” she scoffed back at him. “Did you hear what those hags said about my friend? I’m not leaving until- hey!” 

Amy was staring at the floor from above before she knew what was happening. Metal had scooped her up by the waist, dragging her trolley behind as he shuffled toward the exit with Amy under his arm. She squirmed and groaned at him to let her go until they were well past the shop’s main entrance. He set her down in a small alley with a huff. At least there they were away from prying eyes.

“Why’d you do that? They should’ve said they were sorry!” Metal stepped in front of Amy to prevent her from making the rash decision to run back in and continue threatening the pair of pearl-clutchers. “Ugh! Get out of my way!” She just managed to slip past him when he grabbed her by the wrist. She wasn’t able to stifle a pained yell as Metal’s iron grip tightened around her- He let go just as suddenly, recoiling with guilt as she held her sore wrist.

In a moment of clarity, Amy gasped at the realization that she’d let her temper get the better of her. Worse, the way Metal remorsefully turned away sent her own guilt skyrocketing. “Metal…” He refused to look at her. “I’m sorry! Please don’t be upset.” 

Even at his most careful, even stripped of his weapons, Metal couldn’t help how dangerous his body was - how dangerous he was. For however much he enjoyed Amy’s company and appreciated her support, he couldn’t seem to subvert the expectation that he could cause her harm at any moment. He could cause _anyone_ harm- it’s what he was made for, after all. Those women were right about him; perhaps _monster_ was an apt description. It seemed that every little shred of comfort and normalcy he experienced was fleeting, a temporary feeling punctuated with anger or sadness or guilt. It felt wrong. What was he supposed to do in between those positive moments, anyway? The deep discomfort of the moment made him want to fly far away, rush home- but there wasn’t one to run to.

“Metal, I’m fine! I was just surprised.” She held her wrist up to him as proof. “See? Please don’t feel bad.” He wanted to swat her hand from in front of his nose in annoyance but stopped himself- why was his first instinct so aggressive? Instead, taking a gentle hold of her hand, Metal examined her wrist. It _did_ look fine- but her earlier yell had caught him so off guard.

His soft hold over her hand was also a surprise. Amy stammered bashfully. “I-It’s those old crones! I can’t stand that they said that about you. I just- ugh!” she had to consciously stop herself from getting steamed up again. “I hate when people judge others like that. They’ll never know how wrong they are about you...” she trailed off, somewhat embarrassed and particularly flushed. 

Amy’s kind words and willingness to stick up for him stunned Metal. Not knowing how else to respond, he emitted a low, apologetic tone and slipped his hand away from hers.

“Don’t apologize,” she sighed. “You didn’t do anything wrong; Actually, I would’ve done something stupid if you hadn’t stopped me.” 

It was gratifying that Amy would defend him so earnestly- not only from cruel bystanders but from her own indiscretion as well. Still, he’d already told himself he wouldn’t rely on her to come to his aid. So then, why was it so endearing? He shrugged and rubbed his arm with some chagrin, unsure how he should feel about… everything.

“It’s annoying, isn’t it? I was in such good spirits this morning. Crazy how fast something can sour your mood.” She pouted pensively, remembering her draw from that morning. The Page of Cups stood as a positive reminder to embrace her intuition- to have fun. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been to town with a friend. Then, an idea popped into her mind and Amy’s face softened, her sweet smile returning. It would be foolish to ignore it.

“Metal, I know we’re carrying a lot of stuff, but do you mind if we make one more stop?”

His shoulders slumped. Dragging the rolling case full of books and groceries around didn’t bother him, but Metal was reluctant to visit yet another place full of people gawking at him. He would need time to get used to it.

“Please? Consider it a favor. It won’t take long.”

Amy’s eyes were suddenly twinkling with enthusiasm. He couldn’t tell if he was being manipulated or if anything that could come from denying her request would genuinely please him more than seeing her that way. It didn’t matter for long, as he gave in, taking hold of the trolley and flashing her a hesitant thumbs-up.

“Yes!” she beamed. “You won’t regret it, come on.” Amy led him by the hand excitedly, cutting through alleys and back streets. If anyone had stopped to ogle at them along the way, Metal didn’t notice- he was too enraptured with the instant delight that seemed to spill from Amy as she pulled him along.

Soon, the pair had arrived at a tall building with an open ground floor. Claw machines and brightly-colored lights filled the inside. “Bet you’ve never been to an arcade,” Amy grinned. “It’s nicer to see at night I guess, but the games are fun whenever. Here,” she skipped over to a row of skill games. “It’s probably cheating, but…” Amy took a quick glance around, scanning for attendants. “Ah, who cares, not like they give out prizes for these here. Try this one!”

Metal had soon been thrust in front of a tall machine that glittered with multicolored lights. A shiny metal handle stuck out from the lower part of it. The top read “TRUE GRIP” in bold font. He looked back at Amy with some confusion.

“It’s a grip tester. The harder you hold the handle, the better your score.” She placed a coin in the machine and it chimed a playful tune. “I know you can beat the high score,” she winked. “Try it!”

So this was her game- Amy wanted to put on a positive spin over grabbing her too roughly earlier. He had to admit, it was clever. Even though he could see through her plan, Metal was heartened by her attempt to cheer him up with such an obvious ruse; The least he could do now was indulge her. He confidently took hold of the handle with his usual grip strength, resting his other hand squarely on his hip. The lights on the machine danced around the “strength-o-meter” as it sang a cheery tune. After a few moments of this, the machine decided that on a scale of “meek” to “super grip,” Metal landed squarely in the middle. “KINDA WIMPY,” the game announced. Amy burst into laughter the moment it stopped.

Metal’s engine buzzed incessantly as he let out a series of indignant beeps. He then glared at Amy, who was doubled over and cackling. “Oh man,” she managed to splurt out between fits of laughter, “that was too good! Got a little cocky, huh?” He was far less amused. Metal stuck out his hand to her, making a grabbing gesture with his claws. “Oh? Another round?” she giggled. “Alright, don’t waste my quarter this time, you wimp.”

He shoved the coin into its slot the second she dropped it in his palm. As soon as the lights flickered, Metal grabbed the handle. It seemed simple enough- he got halfway up with his first round, so using twice as much force should be enough. He took hold of it with several times more power just to be safe, staring directly at the tip of the game’s meter with anticipation. Much to his chagrin, the lights stopped just below the top spot. “KINDA TOUGH,” it sang out this time.

Amy was reeling. Metal turned to her angrily and shoved his hand in front of her face, once more gesturing for another coin. She pushed it away between giggles. “Pfft, no way, you’re gonna break the thing!” Metal stomped his foot on the ground angrily in response. “Don’t worry,” Amy placed a hand on his shoulder with a grin. “These things are rigged. You won’t get the high score even if you rip that handle out,” she chuckled. 

Metal crossed his arms in annoyance. Not only was he embarrassed at losing a silly arcade game, but he was surprised to learn that he’d misread Amy somewhat. He assumed she brought him there for an easy win, but she was well aware that it was unlikely to happen. Admittedly, he didn’t feel very guilty anymore, and he supposed it was rather amusing… Was that her intent? Metal turned back to Amy, who was wiping at her eyes happily. She really just wanted to ease the tension and have some fun together- and Amy even knew he’d be a little irritated. She was just being... playful. Like friends are. 

A giddy smile filled her face as she came out of her laughing fit. “Sorry, just wanted to tease you a little. I don’t want you to feel so bad about being strong- I’m tough, I can handle it,” she assured. 

Metal rolled his eyes, his stance softening significantly. Once he realized how silly the whole situation was, he may have even found it somewhat humorous himself. Still, it would be far more amusing if he could get her back. He gestured toward the machine that stood beside the grip tester, inviting her to try it. It was a similar test of strength, this time with a punching bag.

Amy grinned coyly. “I get it, you wanna see me fail, too. I’ll indulge you,” she shrugged. “But only ‘cause I feel bad that you’re such a wimp.”

As Metal bobbed his head mockingly, Amy rolled a quarter into the coin slot. She stretched her arms casually, giving the game a moment to warm up. Once all of its many lights were on and the screen read “PUNCH,” she pulled back her fist and went for a forceful hook, knocking the punching bag up into the sensor. The lights flickered up and down the meter for just a second until the optics at the very top of the machine exploded with colors. “SUPER STRONG!” the game rang out.

If Metal had a jaw to drop it would be on the floor. So much for the games being rigged- Amy knew exactly what she was doing. He would have been vexed if it wasn’t so impressive. He watched as she shook her fingers off and turned back with her beaming smile. “I’m doing that to the next person who calls you a nasty name,” she giggled.

She was nothing short of incredible. Metal recalled her old file in his memory. _Weak_. That was certainly no longer the case. He took a snap of her then, looking cheerful and victorious, and logged it as the main photo in his memory. The word _weak_ no longer applied and was promptly crossed out. Before he could alter the file any more, Amy had taken hold of his hand in her tender way, gazing into him with her soft eyes. 

“You know, you’re one of the most thoughtful people I’ve ever met. I think it’s really admirable how willing you are to be gentle even when it’s a challenge. Don’t ever believe otherwise.”

Metal was stunned by her kindness yet again. What was it that Amy saw in him that others did not? Surely it wasn’t just naivete, given her willingness to be combative in his defense- no, she was no doormat. And Amy didn’t see Metal as fiendish, at least not anymore. But it still took her some time, however less than it would have taken anyone else. Strangers, on the other hand, are temporary, there wouldn’t always be time to show them his true self. Metal did not know how he could possibly appear less menacing to bystanders, nor did the idea of trying to do so appeal to him. He wanted to understand, to calculate if creating an existence as a regular person, grasping at a fleeting sense of belonging, would even be worth it should he succeed. But it was unpredictable. Incalculable.

Amy had said it herself: “ _Crazy how fast something can sour your mood._ ” But it worked conversely as well- on any day, at any given moment, Metal could be more elated than he ever remembered feeling. And there was something so sweet about feeling that way after having his mood soured. It was endlessly more rewarding. So what, then, was the point of lamenting over the impermanence of those moments? There would always be rude strangers, always challenges ahead. No one would ever know him fully. All the more reason, then, for Metal to get to know himself as intimately as possible. _Thoughtful_ was a good place to start. 

......

[playlist link (check notes for details)](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLi57xoV4wdA396AvoMw__0_X77I8rz0MJ)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (notes contain chapter spoilers)
> 
> hello babesss i hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> i like to think that amy has some latent magical powers and her being able to beat the ever loving shit out of a rigged arcade game is just part of her magic. also, she’s stronk.
> 
> also! i’ve been working on a small playlist with songs that remind me of each chapter, but i’ve drawn a blank for a few. if anyone has any songs they associate with the fic (or with metal/amy in general), please feel free to drop suggestions! i love hearing your thoughts and i’m a geezer that is too stubborn to listen to new music unless someone shoves it in front of me.  
> (you can also send me an ask at bimboamyrose.tumblr.com if you prefer)


	12. Everything Has Changed

There was a long tradition of wearing white during the vernal equinox. While Amy had always celebrated on her own, not having known anyone in the occult community personally, it didn’t stop her from wearing a floaty white gown to welcome the sunrise most years. And just her luck- it was meant to be warm the next day during the festival! She had just the dress.

She pulled a gauze sundress from her wardrobe, hanging it on the back of her door in preparation. She smoothed out its long, sheer sleeves and flowing skirt, admiring its pristine appearance. It had been purchased over a year earlier for a picnic that never happened- date plans that fell through or were possibly never really finalized. It was typically how it went with Sonic.

With a sigh, Amy set out the rest of her outfit and changed into loungewear for the evening. It wasn’t late, but she also wasn’t doing anything until morning- _very_ _early_ morning. She had already decided to welcome the sunrise on her own, but it was going to be a long day at the festival nonetheless.

The living room was empty when she stepped out. Metal was reading on the back porch when she slid through the doorway, and he acknowledged her with a quick glance and nod. Amy had handed him the 300-page novel about an hour earlier, but the page was already turned halfway through the book. She probably shouldn’t have been as impressed as she was, Amy thought, but it was still a sight. _I thought_ I _was a quick reader_.

After a few minutes of breathing in the night air and listening to the quick page-turning behind her, Amy turned to Metal’s cross-legged figure on the floor of the deck. “Are you enjoying it?” 

Metal nodded without returning her gaze. Another page turned.

Amy leaned on the deck railing, listening as distant waves crashed ashore. It was a pleasantly cool night- she wasn’t shivering without her blanket as she had been for months. She also welcomed the faint scent of rosemary that sprouted from her small garden, having smelled nothing but salt and snow since last autumn. Another crisp page turn. 

“You don’t have to finish it in one sitting, you know.” No response. She faced him. “Do you wanna watch a movie with me?”

Metal held up a pointy index finger, signaling to give him a minute. Amy couldn’t help but snort at this gesture, knowing he’d seen someone do it on TV not long ago and was quick to pick up communication cues. There was another brief silence before Metal closed the book, having reached the end of the chapter.

“Do you like it so far?”

Metal gave her a pronounced nod. He was intrigued, reading about the long chain of events leading a triumphant hero home after a conquest overseas. The many adventures and accomplishments described in the writing were compelling, and Metal found himself engrossed in the power fantasy.

Amy nodded. “Thought so. It’s one of my favorites.”

The first time she’d said this, Metal was surprised- but after seeing another side of her at the arcade, he understood. The book’s protagonist was powerful, clever, determined... perhaps she related. Or maybe she was just a fantasy adventure buff; He appreciated the recommendation either way.

“So, about that movie-” Amy was interrupted by a loud ringtone coming from inside. She hurried back into her room to pick up the call.

Admittedly, a movie sounded pretty mundane after everything Metal had read that evening. _Most_ of what he’d done in the last weeks had been mundane. It was strange, being directionless, just waiting for the opportunity to recover his memory. And then what? He was getting used to experiencing unfamiliar affairs; the novelty was wearing off. He could continue waiting for something big to happen- to remember his past life, or have an encounter with his creator- but he knew it ultimately wasn’t what was keeping him there. The real reason peeked through the back door and beckoned him in.

“Tails wants to talk to you,” Amy said as she handed him her device.

“Oh- hi Metal.” Tails still found a certain degree of awkwardness in speaking to the robot directly. He had hoped for Amy to interpret. Metal raised a hand in greeting from the other end. “Hey, would you wanna come over tomorrow so I can take a look at a few things?”

“Tails...” Amy scolded gently from off-screen.

“O-oh right. Uh… how are you?” After seeing Metal look off past the screen with a confused beep, Tails continued. “There’s this chat function if you need it- here.” 

A speech bubble came on screen. _Tails: Hi!_

Metal was less worried about how to communicate than what he would actually say. How do people usually answer that question? He tapped gingerly at the screen.

_Amy: Operating normally._

“Ah, that’s good.” There was a pause. Amy had insisted Tails talk to Metal personally, emphasizing that she thought it important to let him speak for himself. Manners and pleasantries were also mentioned, but Tails had a feeling Metal didn’t have a lot of those skills going for him either. “Yeah, I’m feeling a lot better myself…”

Metal didn’t have a lot of experience with conversations, but it did seem logical to repeat the question. He made a note to do this for next time. As for answering Tails, Metal held his hand in a thumbs-up on screen. The signal seemed to him quite versatile.

“Okay. Anyway, I was wondering if you could come over tomorrow for a checkup? And, maybe we can replace your, you know.”

It had been on Metal’s mind ever since he began to remember seemingly random moments from his past. And he would be in need of recharging and refueling soon, anyway. There was, however, a conflict- he looked up at Amy.

“Are you okay with going to Tails’ by yourself after you drop me off?” she asked.

Though he’d promised her a ride, Amy would be away for the afternoon either way. It didn’t seem to interfere with her plans, so he nodded at Tails and typed a short message.

_Amy: 1:25 PM_

“Oh,” Tails responded, “that’s… precise. Works for me, I guess.” Another uncomfortable pause. Usually one would continue the conversation in some way, at least acknowledging the agreement, but neither Tails nor Metal really understood what the other was looking for. “Okay, well, see you then. Bye.” Tails chuckled awkwardly before hanging up. 

Amy clapped her hands together enthusiastically. “Looks like you have plans for tomorrow! Great.”

Metal wasn’t sure if he considered sitting idle in a lab “plans,” since Tails deactivated him last time and it wasn’t the most pleasant feeling. It was just simple maintenance in his eyes. He shrugged casually, placing the communicator aside.

Hands innocently clasped behind her back, Amy leaned in with her usual charming grin. “Still up for a movie?”

\--------

Amy’s taste in films ws, evidently, not like that of her favorite novels. She shoved popcorn into her mouth absent-mindedly as they both sat watching from her couch, Metal’s perpetually confused state causing him to shift focus from the television to Amy and back. “It’s a romantic comedy,” she’d told him. “The main characters are work rivals who really like each other but neither will admit it. It’s pretty funny!” It was no wonder neither of the characters admitted their affection for the other- they were constantly at odds, combative even. Amy swooned every time the two leads competed or argued over something petty and one became flustered.

Perhaps it was his limited understanding of relationships or romance but Metal had been under the impression that couples generally enjoyed one another’s company. But when the film’s protagonist decided to move far away and faced little opposition from the romantic interest, the duo seemed to compete over who could appear more cool and unphased. Just as Metal thought he could predict the ending, Amy chimed in. “Oh, here comes the grand gesture!” Sure enough, one of the characters stopped the other from leaving at the very last moment and feelings of affection were finally shared. “Aww,” he heard Amy sigh dreamily. Watching 86 minutes of tension between those two only to become a couple in the end was beyond vexing.

Amy stretched her arms as the credits rolled. “What did you think of the movie? Cute, right?”

 _Cute_ wasn’t the word he would have chosen. Did it really only take a single gesture for people to fall in love? No, they were hiding their affection- but why? He scratched at his forehead instead.

“Confused? Is it ‘cause they were rivals?” she chuckled. Metal bobbed his head around, thinking that was pretty obvious. “Love is complicated,” she stated as matter of fact. “Trust me…” Amy trailed off with a huff before hopping off the couch. “I’m not very sleepy, can we watch another?”

There wasn’t much point in disagreeing, so Amy quickly put on the next film and made herself a hot cup of camomile as the intro began. “This movie’s also a romance, but it’s more of a drama. It’s kind of a tear-jerker,” she giggled. 

Did that mean she was going to cry? Why would she be so cheery about that? Whenever Metal thought he began to understand, some little, bewildering nuance made itself known. He would have been annoyed had Amy not plopped herself back down next to him with a flushed smile and excitement in her virescent eyes. 

The leads in this film did look to be more interested in each other than the last. They’d spent some time together one spring before becoming separated, and the romantic interest then spent the rest of the movie trying to recapture the protagonists’ affections. It was incredibly long- much slower paced than the last. Amy began yawning about an hour in, and by the time the second act was wrapping up, she’d laid her head on the couch. “I’ll head to bed after this…” she started, but ended up fast asleep on a throw pillow just minutes later.

Metal couldn’t keep himself from glancing at Amy’s sleeping form every few minutes. It became increasingly difficult to concentrate on the television the more he checked on Amy- noting her breathing pattern, heart rate, temperature. A bit cold. He pulled the blanket she kept draped on the back of the couch over her body, resting his head in his hand as he observed her. Unable to focus, he wondered why he was even still watching the film at that point and was about to switch it off when the current scene caught his eye. The couple must have reconciled, as they were now sitting together on a picnic blanket, one’s head laying in the other’s lap. The love interest’s fingers were buried tenderly in the protagonist’s hair as they enjoyed the scenery together. 

He gazed back at Amy. She lay with her head inches from his lap, curled up comfortably in her warm blanket. Breathing steadily. Hair splayed out over her makeshift pillow. Metal had to stop himself as he lifted a hand in her direction, shaking his head and fixing his eyes back on the TV. The last scene had apparently been a flashback, as the leads were now much older. One sat at the other’s bedside in a hospital, recounting the memory. The protagonist died moments later. That was… certainly a dark turn. It must be what Amy meant when she mentioned the sorrowful theme.

Metal laid eyes on his friend once more as he contemplated the ending. At least, he attempted to. The scene of the lovers on a picnic blanket was the only thing capable of occupying his mind at that moment. It seemed so peaceful, so quiet. Metal found himself enjoying those tranquil moments during his own day; doubly so if Amy happened to be near. It was what one could call _relaxing._ She _did_ seem incredibly comfortable around him - as he did with her. As credits rolled on the screen, he leaned in a little closer to Amy, inching his hand toward her tousled hair. It looked soft and silk-like; inviting even. Would this wake her?

As gently as possible, Metal touched the end of Amy’s quills with his fingertips. They were smoothly brushed down, tapered bluntly to be minimally prickly. He’d often noticed her combing her hair so it laid sleekly out of the way, even seeing her trim the ends once. Though her quills couldn’t scratch or prick him, the mildly wooly texture felt pleasant in his hand. Metal’s fingers crawled up the length of her short bob and towards her scalp, where he combed down any stray pieces that had slipped out of the neatly styled locks in her sleep. Amy stirred slightly and Metal swore his engine stopped functioning for the split second he thought to have awoken her. To his relief, she just nuzzled her face into the cushion a bit before laying still once more.

Her bangs covered her sleeping eyes now. Metal brushed the short wisps away from her face and gazed at her reposeful expression. This is what regular people look like when they rest- tranquil, relaxed, with small, gentle movements. Still but alive. Metal supposed his own idle body was more of a lifeloss prop and tried to imagine what actual sleep felt like as he separated thin strands of her hair, letting them glide between his fingers until the ends slid out of his grip and floated back down.

After some time, he checked his clock- it was just past 2:00 AM. Metal was unsure what it meant, but he’d understood Amy wanted to “welcome” the vernal sunrise. He doubted she’d hear the alarm from inside her room. Sunrise would occur at 7:34 AM. She took about 30 minutes to get ready, on average. A few more minutes to travel to the appropriate location. Setting his internal alarm for 6:15, Metal resolved to ensure Amy awoke in time for her strange ritual. He smoothed down any quills he’d misplaced on her head and switched off the TV. It was probably time for him to “rest” as well; but something about Amy sleeping at his side kept him lucid and he sat awake with his thoughts for hours, peeking over at her when she entered his mind. He did this every few minutes.

There was still so much for him to consider. He hadn’t remembered anything new since Amy recounted their last story back on Angel Island. She’d even told him about other times they encountered each other over the years, though they didn’t interact with one another directly for some time. It was fruitless. To Metal, it sounded as if he’d been dragged along on his creator’s various schemes only to lose every time- but none of it was familiar in his mind. If he could think freely, if he could crave autonomy, then why had he stayed with Eggman for so long? How did the man manage to keep Metal on his side for nearly ten years? There must have been _something_ in his memory that could provide an answer. He needed to understand his past perspective.

Metal’s alarm was due to go off in another minute. It was the longest he’d sat on his own, just thinking- no, not on his own; with a friend by his side. Even separated by consciousness, Amy’s presence felt comforting and provided him some fortitude. Metal heard Amy’s alarm go off faintly from her room. He was pleased with himself for predicting just the time she planned to wake up. It didn’t seem to reach her ears, as she continued to snooze, so he tapped her on the shoulder softly until her eyes half-opened.

She grumbled groggily for a moment before shooting up unexpectedly. “Did I- is it the next day?” She looked around frantically. Metal chimed to get her attention and she whipped her head around as her face flushed with embarrassment. “Oh my gosh- did I fall asleep here? I’m so sorry!”

Metal watched her scramble out from under the blanket and grope under the couch for her missing slippers. He was waving his hands in front of him dismissively, but Amy was too panicked to notice. “I probably missed my alarm,” she thought aloud. He finally took hold of her shoulder to get her attention. Then he cocked his head in the direction of the digital clock beneath the TV. _6:17 AM._ It was early.

“Oh, I still have time,” she exhaled. Wearing an apologetic smile, she turned back to her friend. “Thanks for waking me. Sorry I kinda took over your bed…” It wasn’t the most eloquent way to put it. Amy could feel her cheeks warming up again. “I should go get ready!” 

Amy’s exit from the living room was never complete without tossing the blanket over the back of the couch, which she did more haphazardly than usual before slinking away into her bedroom. Metal sank back into the cushions, now staring out the back door into the predawn darkness. Well equipped to see through the night, he watched absent-mindedly as some palm trees swayed in the distance. The sunrise “woke” him daily, but he supposed this would be his first time observing it. He was sure he’d get a front row seat of the dusk horizon first…

In her room, Amy groomed her hair hastily, still red-faced and slightly shaken. Falling asleep on the couch when you live by yourself is one thing, but it was definitely rude with a roommate present. _Wait, roommate?_ Was Metal living with her really becoming that official? She did her best to perish the thought as she combed her lashes with mascara. 

Amy dug up an old wood-beaded necklace and tan belt from her wardrobe, accessorizing her otherwise monochromatic outfit. She slipped on her lightweight dress, tugging on the underskirt as she noticed it bunching in the mirror. She spent far too long adjusting the billowy sleeves and repositioning her belt, still a bit embarrassed to face her house guest. It was a quarter to seven now. Time to get outside and start the ritual before it became too late.

Pulling a small saddle bag over her head, Amy stepped out of the room quietly. “I’ll be back in a bit,” she said as she scuttled toward the back door. To her surprise, Metal was waiting for her just by the exit, leaning against the wall. 

Amy floated into the room, looking ethereal in the airy ensemble. Certainly a change from her usual colorful garments and the bulky outerwear she sported to keep her warm. Metal tried to hide the strange delight he felt at the sight of her and casually pointed a thumb out toward the dark outdoors, offering her a ride. She lit up.

“Oh! Did you want to come?” Amy hadn’t expected him to join her, much less after worrying about the awkward situation she found herself in that morning. Finding that Metal didn’t seem to mind was a weight off. ”Well, it’s nothing fancy since I’d have to hike pretty far to get to where you can see eastward clearly. I usually just do it from the beach,” she shrugged, not wanting to get his hopes up. “It’s still nice to watch the sky, though.”

A small miscalculation. Metal assumed Amy would ask for a ride and already knew where they were going- it was obvious to him, anyway. The taller hills on the other side of the valley gave an unobstructed view of the eastern coastline, and there was still time to fly there. He shook his head, offering Amy his outstretched palm. She understood immediately. 

“You wanna fly somewhere? Is it close?” He nodded. “Well…” Amy placed a hand over his, feeling herself blush for what seemed like the hundredth time that morning, this time backed by a much more pleasant warmth.

\-----

Dawn’s first light illuminated the horizon in soft gray tones as the sun got ready to emerge. Amy’s pale figure practically glowed against the dim morning. She’d adorned herself with a light shawl against the cool air and every inch of her attire trailed behind in the gentle breeze. Metal watched as she wrote in a journal and took clockwise steps around an imaginary circle before sitting on her heels to meditate. It was an unusual ritual, the point of which was lost on him; but learning about the tradition was interesting to Metal, if only because it was so to Amy. After a few minutes, she invited him to sit with her and wait for sunrise.

Metal crossed his legs as he sat by her. He looked ahead into the horizon, but was still observing her rhythmic breathing and occasional soft sigh. “Thanks for bringing me here- it’s definitely a step up from sitting a few feet from the house,” she chuckled. “I usually do this alone. It’s kinda nice having someone to share it with, though.” He nodded at this with a soft, mechanical tone. She turned to him and continued. “The point of doing this isn’t just to watch the sunrise, you know. It’s supposed to help you reflect and get in touch with your surroundings. You’re pretty attentive already- maybe you can try seeing how many sounds you can hear.”

On the surface, it sounded silly; There was hardly a moment when Metal wasn’t contemplating something or listening to his surroundings. Yet he recalled the first time Amy advised him to reflect all those years ago, when the world was new to him. He was just as directionless again now. Back then, he’d ignored all the signs, all the guidance- and from what little he could remember, it didn’t appear to land him anywhere worthwhile. Metal glanced at Amy momentarily before concentrating fully on listening to what occurred around him. Despite the overall quiet, leaves rustled and birds chirped in the distance. The ocean swayed calmly below as little animals scuttled about high in the trees behind him. And then there was Amy- her steady respiration and the light billowing of her dress in the breeze. It was grounding, somehow- Metal’s mind was clear for what felt like the first time in his life.

“It’s rising.” After spending quite some time mostly listening, there was now something to see as well. The sun inched over the horizon, warming the sky with its red and orange light. 

Amy pulled out her small journal and scribbled some notes before raising her face toward the rising sun. Metal found himself watching the scene through the reflection in Amy’s shimmering eyes rather than putting much attention to the sky. 

“I’ve been thinking,” she finally faced him, “it feels like everything has changed lately. Having you here has been really… different. In a good way.” She paged back and forth through the book with her index finger absently. “But, change can be scary, sometimes. I remember one time...” Amy shook her head anxiously, staring straight out into the ocean. “Well, I guess you could say... you rebelled? Against Eggman.”

Metal listened to her with intrigue. He had hoped that the next thing she’d recount would lead to answers, but so far it was only causing further confusion. If he had rebelled against his master at some point, something in her nervous eyes told him it wasn’t for the better.

The colors up ahead shifted steadily from magenta and lilac to greyish blue as the sun made its way past the horizon. A bright golden column shone in the sea and as Amy squinted in the yellow light, she lowered her eyes to its watery reflection below. Just as she parted her lips to continue, a distinct _ZIP_ came from behind the pair. Amy jerked her body around to look over the other side of the cliff. Metal’s engine was already whirring in annoyance as he predicted what came next.

The breeze turned to a whirlwind momentarily as Sonic skidded to a halt in front of Metal and Amy. The sudden gust sent her dress billowing wildly and the shawl she wore across her shoulders floated up and away, past the eastern edge of the cliff. “Woah!” Sonic jumped for the scarf but it was out of his reach before he could catch it. “Uh, oops,” he chuckled remorsefully.

Amy was about to bemoan the loss of her silky stole when another sudden gust blew back her hair and skirt once more. Metal propelled himself off the cliffside to go after it. Amy and Sonic watched as it drifted just out of Metal’s grasp a few times. Sonic received a dirty look from her when he appeared far too amused at the sight. Metal finally managed to catch it, returning it to its owner.

“Thanks, Metal,” Amy reached out and took hold of her scarf, which, to her dismay, made a harsh ripping sound as she pulled it back toward her. She gasped slightly when she realized it had become unfortuitously caught in Metal’s claws when she attempted to take it back. A lamentful ring came from him in realization. “It’s okay! I can fix it when we get home, don’t worry.” Amy gave her friend a reassuring smile, dawning the scarf over her shoulders once more and folding the tear out of sight. “Thank you, really.”

“Ah, sorry about that,” Sonic apologized from the sideline. 

“It’s fine,” Amy exhaled. She didn’t want to sour the tranquility of the morning altogether by having a tantrum. All in all, it was still a nice surprise to see him. “You’re up early.”

Sonic rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, couldn’t sleep.”

“It’s 7:30 in the morning. You really haven’t slept all night?”

“Nope,” he snickered. “Hey, am I interrupting? I need to talk to you.”

“Well,” Amy sighed, turning back to Metal. “Let’s talk later, okay?” If Sonic was looking for her, it must have been important.

Metal looked from Sonic back to Amy with crossed arms. He would have made some sassy response if she didn’t return his gaze so pleadingly, preemptively beaming with gratitude. With a nod, he offered her a hand getting up that she graciously accepted. 

Sonic cleared his throat. “Sorry, mind if we get a little privacy? I’ll walk you home so we can chat.”

Even though she knew his intent wasn’t malicious, Amy still frowned at Sonic’s request in the wake of how rude it must have sounded to her friend. “Could you meet me back home, Metal?” He simply returned with a reluctant nod which she thanked him for. Amy waved him off as her and Sonic started down the hillside.

“You’re good with walking, right?” Sonic nodded toward Amy’s open footwear, which didn’t seem the most comfortable for a hike.

“I’ll be fine! Is everything okay?”

“Well…”

Their voices drifted away before Metal could catch anything significant; not that he was looking to eavesdrop. It would be at least a 30-minute hike down, then another few minutes before they arrived at the beach. Metal stared into the horizon for the better part of that time, trying desperately to remember something- anything- about what Amy had begun recounting. He’d rebelled. It was as Metal suspected: he _hadn’t_ remained completely loyal all those years. Wasn’t it the same as what he was doing now? Why hadn’t Amy said anything earlier? Metal raised his palm to eye-level, examining his sharp fingers and wondering uneasily what suffering came at those cold hands. 

........

[Unfamiliar Playlist](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLi57xoV4wdA396AvoMw__0_X77I8rz0MJ)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi babes- thanks for reading as always. reminder i’m adding songs to the playlist each chapter and if you have a suggestion, shoot it my way


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